So Glad We Made It
by DCFanatic4life
Summary: Now that Stephanie has her memory back, will everything go back to normal? Sequel to I Used to Know You Completed
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: The characters and real people do not belong to me. The only person that belongs to me is Regan.  
  
A/N: This takes place right where "I Used to Know You" left off.  
  
Btw, I'm so happy you all enjoyed the ending for "I Used to Know You." I had written that whole fic beforehand, but decided to change the second half, and I'm glad that it worked. :)  
  
~  
  
"So are we going to tell people?" Stephanie asked as she and Chris still stood at the altar.  
  
"Tell them what?"  
  
"Have you lost your memory?" she said jokingly.  
  
"No, I haven't, but what are we telling them about, the baby or the memory?"  
  
"Hmm, one or the other," Stephanie answered, smirking.  
  
"One or the other?"  
  
"If we tell them both, I might get killed from all the congratulations and hugs," she told him.  
  
"Wait until later, I'm the one who's most happy."  
  
"Are you?"  
  
Chris leaned in and kissed Stephanie deeply. She responded just like she used to. It was a feeling Chris had missed terribly in her absence. Even when he had Stephanie back with no memory she was different in this way.  
  
"Daddy, wanna go down," Regan said, interrupting their kiss.  
  
"Ok Princess, where are you going?"  
  
"I wanna go see Unca Shane," she told him.  
  
"Do you know where Uncle Shane is?" Stephanie asked, smiling at her little girl.  
  
"Uh huh," Regan nodded, pointing at him across the garden.  
  
"Ok Princess, you can go see him, but be careful ok?" Chris said, giving her a kiss on the cheek then setting her down.  
  
Chris wrapped a secure arm around Stephanie as they watched Regan run happily across the room. She caught up to Shane and pulled on his pant leg. He looked down and scooped her up in one motion. Stephanie then turned to Chris.  
  
"I missed you," she whispered.  
  
Chris laughed.  
  
"What's so funny?" she said.  
  
"You missed me, how do you think I felt?"  
  
"Well, I know, but I was just saying, I missed you."  
  
"I missed you a hell of a lot more."  
  
"Well, duh, you thought I was dead."  
  
"Yes, and that's something I don't wish on anybody."  
  
"I know baby," she said, leaning up to kiss his cheek.  
  
"It's amazing," he commented.  
  
"What is?"  
  
"The fact it's our wedding, and no one has come up to congratulate us yet."  
  
"You know, that's kind of rude," she said, "It's our day, we should be getting all the attention."  
  
"Maybe we can sneak away for a little while," Chris said.  
  
Stephanie giggled, "You think we can?"  
  
"It's worth a try."  
  
Stephanie nodded her approval. Chris looked around to see if anyone was even paying attention to them. Everyone was busy mingling with other people. He took this as a good sign, and grabbed Stephanie's hand. He looked at her briefly before they made a mad dash towards a secluded part of the gardens. They found a bench, and Chris sat down on it and pulled Stephanie into his lap.  
  
"I think this can definitely be put down as the best day of my life," Chris told her seriously.  
  
"Really? Better than our first wedding day?"  
  
"Definitely. I mean, not only did we get married today, we're having a baby, AND you got your memory back."  
  
"Yeah, I guess this is turning out to be a great day."  
  
"Stephy, you just have this way of understating things."  
  
"Well, I mean, I'm excited too," she said smiling brightly.  
  
"Good, I don't want to be the only one afflicted here."  
  
"Trust me, you're not," she said, leaning down to kiss him.  
  
"Sometimes I wonder what the hell I did to be so lucky."  
  
"Well, I think it's a matter of karma. Do you know how much good karma you've been saving up since I left."  
  
"A lot I suppose."  
  
"Tons, that's why you got me back."  
  
"A little full of yourself are we?"  
  
"Yeah, but what are you gonna do about that?"  
  
"Nothing."  
  
"That's what I thought."  
  
Chris rubbed her still flat tummy, "Hey there baby, I'm your Daddy."  
  
Stephanie smiled as she watched him. She hadn't realized how much she missed this man. Sure, she could remember the last two years when she was without her memory, but it was different now. She came to realize that she had missed Chris terribly.  
  
"I used to dream about you," she told him.  
  
He looked up from her tummy, "Huh?"  
  
"Before I got my memory back, I used to dream about you."  
  
"But you said that you didn't have any memories of me at all."  
  
"I didn't. I didn't know it was you. But many times I would dream that I was running towards someone, but I could never figure out what that something was, never fully grasp it, no matter how hard or fast I ran. I realize now it was you."  
  
"Steph, you'll never know how much I missed you while you were gone."  
  
She caressed his hair, "I know, thank you for never giving up on me."  
  
"I could never do that, ever."  
  
"So it looks like we have an announcement to make soon huh?"  
  
"Two announcements," he said, rubbing her stomach again.  
  
"We're going to be happy from now on, I just know it Chris, I do."  
  
"I hope you're right Steph, but you never know, I mean, things change, I think we're solid proof of that."  
  
"You're right, so is it time to face the truth and get out with everything?" she asked standing up.  
  
"I think it is. It's time to own up."  
  
He stood and grabbed her hand, and together they walked back to the party. 


	2. Chapter 2

Jericho and Stephanie walked hand in hand back to their reception. They were about to walk into the large white tent that was serving as their reception place, when Kurt stopped them.  
  
"Where do you think you two are going?" he asked.  
  
"Into our reception or is that forbidden?" Chris said.  
  
"Not until we announce you," Kurt said.  
  
"Announce us?" Stephanie asked.  
  
"Just wait a second."  
  
Chris and Stephanie looked at each other, both confused, as Kurt went away. He walked back seconds later with a microphone in hand. He smiled at them, the confusion on their faces causing him to give a chuckle. He brought the microphone up to his mouth.  
  
"Ladies and gentlemen, may I present to you for the second time, Mr. and Mrs. Jericho."  
  
Chris and Stephanie laughed then walked into the tent. There was thunderous applause from everyone as they stood up to see the couple. They walked up to the head table and sat down. Regan clapped with everyone, even if she didn't exactly know why everyone was clapping for her mom and dad.  
  
They sat down and Chris could see Stephanie soak up the attention like a sponge. Yes, Stephanie was definitely back. He laughed softly to himself before he felt someone tugging on his jacket sleeve. He turned and smiled at his little girl.  
  
"What is it Princess?"  
  
"Why everyone clapping?" she asked.  
  
"They're clapping for me and Mama."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because they're happy for us," he told her.  
  
"Me too?"  
  
"Yes, they're happy for you too," he said, putting her on his lap.  
  
"Yay!" she exclaimed, clapping her hands.  
  
Chris laughed as he looked at her. He felt Stephanie grab his hand and he looked over to her. She leaned her head on his shoulder. Chris kissed her head softly. They watched as Kurt picked up his wine glass and stood up.  
  
"Quiet down everyone, quiet down," he announced, tapping his glass with his fork.  
  
Everyone turned their attention to Kurt.  
  
"As the best man, I have to give a little speech. Now, you're all probably thinking, how could I possibly top what I said years ago when these two actually got married. Well, it was difficult, but I think I did it. You two are made for each other, probably more so than any two people I've ever seen in my life. I mean, look at you two. You're both good-looking, you make a perfect couple already. You have a beautiful little girl who has everyone wrapped around her adorable finger, me most of all. But most importantly, no else could possibly stand to be with either of them, but them."  
  
Everyone laughed.  
  
"I resent that Kurt," Jericho said.  
  
"Only cause you know it's true. Well, as I was saying, you two deserve each other. And you two deserve all the happiness you get. I mean, look at you two. If anyone deserves to be happy, it's you two. I think that you've been through enough. And I'm happy for you. I saw Chris at his lowest point, and that was when he lost you Stephanie. And it was like he lost a part of his soul. And lucky for all of us, you came back Steph. And you may not be exactly the same, but just having you back is enough for all of us. So I hope that you two appreciate this second chance, and I know you'll be just as happy as you were before."  
  
Everyone clapped. Stephanie looked over at Chris, who smiled back at her. They had their own little announcement that they wanted to make. Stephanie leaned over and kissed Chris, much to everyone's delight. She then moved her mouth next to his ear.  
  
"So should we tell them our little surprises?" she whispered.  
  
"Why don't we just tell them about what you're expecting," he said, looking down at her stomach, "We can save the other thing for later. I want to keep it ours for right now."  
  
"Sounds good to me."  
  
Chris put Regan on her chair, and stood up. Stephanie stood up as well. Chris clinked his glass signaling that he wanted to talk. Everyone quieted down again to see what Chris had to say. As soon as he knew all eyes were on him he turned to Stephanie and smiled.  
  
"First of all, I'd like to thank you all for coming," he said.  
  
"I want to thank everyone as well. It means a lot to me that you all came. I may not remember my first wedding," Stephanie winked at Chris, "But I'll certainly never forget this one."  
  
"But that's not the only thing we wanted to say," Chris said.  
  
"We have an announcement of our own," she told everyone.  
  
"Well, get to it then," Edge shouted.  
  
"Shut up Edge," Chris yelled back, laughing.  
  
"What we're trying to say is that," Stephanie paused, "We're going to have another baby."  
  
Everyone gasped then started clapping again. Stephanie and Chris just grinned. Linda ran up to them and hugged both Stephanie and Chris. Kurt clapped Chris on the back, in congratulations.  
  
"God, you sure work fast don't you Chris?" Kurt said.  
  
"I don't know what you mean Kurt?" Chris joked.  
  
"You just get her back, then knock her up again," Kurt shook his head.  
  
"Well, I had to make up for lost time."  
  
Regan stood on her chair and held her arms out to Chris. Chris took her in his arms and she wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face into his shoulder. She didn't exactly understand why everyone was congratulating her parents.  
  
"You ok Princess?" Chris asked her softly.  
  
"I your baby Daddy," she said.  
  
"You'll always be my baby," he told her, "But don't you want a little brother or sister?"  
  
"No, I your only baby," Regan said sadly.  
  
"You'll always be my first baby," Chris said to her, "Always."  
  
"Kay," she said brightly.  
  
"And don't you want a little baby sister like Sam?"  
  
"Like Sam?" she said, her eyes wide.  
  
"Yeah," Chris said, in an excited tone.  
  
"Mama," Regan said, turning to Stephanie, "I want baby."  
  
Stephanie smiled, "I'm glad baby."  
  
Regan held her arms out to Stephanie and Stephanie hugged her little girl. It felt so good to hold her little girl again. Stephanie hugged her a little tighter. Regan certainly wasn't the infant she remembered her as.  
  
They sat down for dinner then. But everyone, at one point, came up to congratulate them. Everyone except for one person. One person wasn't exactly happy being there in the first place. And she scowled as she watched Chris feed Stephanie some of his dinner. It was so sickening.  
  
Trish Stratus watched the happy couple with disdain. This day was absolutely horrible. She hadn't wanted to come at all, but since everyone else from the company had shown up, it would look bad if she had pulled a no-show. And she had to keep up appearances.  
  
But she damned the day that Stephanie had waltzed back into Chris's life. She had been trying to get with Chris for the past two years. But the dumb twit was so damn faithful to his dead wife. She'd been coy and supportive and nothing fucking worked. He wouldn't get over his slut of a wife.  
  
It wasn't that she wanted Chris, she wanted to be a part of the McMahon family. She wanted the wealth that it afforded. She wanted to know that she would be set for the rest of her life. And she thought Chris would be the ins into that life of wealth and fortune. But he would never take her bait.  
  
She had tried to seduce Vince, tried many a time, but it had never actually worked. He always went back to Linda. And Shane, well, she couldn't even try with Shane, he was so wrapped up in his precious Marissa. Chris was the only way she could get in, and she wanted in so badly.  
  
She had been happy to see Stephanie dead. She actually couldn't believe that she had fallen into such luck. It seemed almost too easy. She would swoop in and comfort Chris during his time of need. And Chris, being so distraught, would fall right into her arms. And then she would be the best stepmother to Regan. Then she would fall right in with the McMahons, becoming just like Stephanie to them. It was so simple, so utterly simple.  
  
But Chris didn't cooperate, he never cooperated. He loved Stephanie. Why he loved her, she'd never figure out. As she looked at the two of them, all happy and the such, a plan came over her. She smirked evilly as she kept thinking about what she could do.  
  
If Stephanie didn't have her memory back, then maybe, just maybe she could work that to her advantage. Maybe convince Stephanie that she and Chris had had a thing while she was gone. Stephanie probably believed that Chris had been faithful the whole time, and while everyone knew he had, what Stephanie didn't know couldn't hurt her.  
  
Then maybe she could convince Stephanie that Chris really didn't love her and had gotten over her. And Stephanie could run away back to England, and want to forget her past again. Then she could step in and take her place effortlessly. It was all too perfect.  
  
Smile all you want now, she thought, because it sure as hell won't last. 


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: If you want to know why I have Trish as the antagonist, I refer you to Chapter 5 of "I Used to Know You." ;)  
  
~  
  
"We didn't even get to go on a honeymoon," Stephanie whined as they walked into the arena.  
  
"So what else is new?"  
  
"You'd think Daddy would let us have one, he didn't let us have one last time," she pouted.  
  
"Remember what your dad said last time though?"  
  
"Yes, that us getting to travel all the time was honeymoon enough," Stephanie deadpanned.  
  
Chris laughed and wrapped his arm around Stephanie's waist. He let his hand settle on her flat stomach and gave it a gentle rub. Stephanie smiled softly and leaned in a little closer to him. They both watched as Regan ran ahead of them then stopped and looked back.  
  
"Come on," she said, waiting impatiently.  
  
Chris laughed, "She gets more like you every day. Both my girls are impatient."  
  
"Only because you are the slowest guy on the planet," she grinned.  
  
Stephanie broke away from him and ran down the hallway after Regan. Regan screamed and started running away. Chris laughed as Stephanie scooped Regan up and kissed her cheeks. Regan laughed giddily and Chris thought, once again, about how lucky he was.  
  
"Aren't you going to wait for me?" he called out.  
  
"Should we wait for Daddy Regan?"  
  
Regan scrunched up her face, "Uh uh."  
  
"You heard her Daddy, we just can't wait forever."  
  
"Nope Daddy," Regan told him.  
  
Chris pouted, and Stephanie laughed, "Oh no Reg, we made Daddy sad."  
  
"Sowwy Daddy," Regan said.  
  
"We'll be in the dressing room Chris," Stephanie said.  
  
"Ok."  
  
Chris watched as Stephanie and Regan walked away. Unbeknownst to him was the fact that someone else was watching this scene. And she found it sickeningly sweet. It almost made her want to puke right then and there. The happy little family. She wanted to spit this awful taste out of her mouth.  
  
But now wasn't the time for that, now was the time for her plan to take action. She put on her best little coy face and prepared herself to talk and be nice and pretty in front of Chris. She pulled her already low-cut top down a little farther, exposing more of her ample cleavage and checked herself in the mirror quickly. Applying some lip gloss and she was ready.  
  
"Chris," she said brightly.  
  
Chris turned around, "Hey Trish what's up?"  
  
"Oh, I just wanted to say congratulations on the wedding and everything. I didn't get the chance to at the wedding," she said.  
  
Then she hugged him. He construed it as a friendly gesture, and hugged her back. Then she went the extra mile and pressed her breasts against him. Chris pulled away quickly and let go of her. He looked at her a little suspiciously, but the look disappeared moments later.  
  
"That's ok, but thanks," he smiled.  
  
"Silly me, it had completely slipped my mind," she giggled like a bimbo.  
  
"Not a problem, really, it's nice of you to congratulate us though."  
  
"How is Stephanie?"  
  
"She's good, going through the pregnancy stuff."  
  
"Oh, that's too bad, poor thing, it must be so hard on her."  
  
"Well, she's been through it before," Chris said.  
  
"But the poor dear, she can't remember that. It must be devastating to have a child you can't even remember."  
  
Chris wanted to laugh. Actually, Stephanie remembered everything about her pregnancy. Stephanie remembered everything about her life. Him, Regan, her family, friends, job, everything. But what everyone else didn't know couldn't hurt them.  
  
"I think she's getting by."  
  
"And you," Trish said, reaching out to put her hand on his shoulder, "It must be so trying for you."  
  
Chris looked at her a little weirdly, "Well, I guess it was hard, but it's all cool now. I mean, I have Stephanie back, what could be better than that?"  
  
She ran her hand down his chest, "Yes, but she doesn't even remember you."  
  
Chris took a step back, "It doesn't matter. I love her. I'll see you around Trish."  
  
Chris walked away quickly. Trish cursed to herself. He was supposed to break down and tell her all his problems so she could comfort him. What the hell was his problem? He never did anything like she thought he would, he would always go in the other direction. He was a hard guy to figure out.  
  
Chris scowled as he thought about Trish. It seemed like she was coming onto him. But that couldn't be right, could it? I mean, Trish was just a friend, and she understood how much he loved Stephanie. He thought everyone understood how much he loved Stephanie. He was probably thinking too much into it anyways. He cleared his head and entered his dressing room.  
  
"Geez, it's about time," Stephanie said.  
  
"I was talking to Trish."  
  
"Oh, how is she?"  
  
Chris sat down next to Stephanie and he furrowed his eyebrows, "I don't know, she was weird."  
  
"Weird, what do you mean, like she was sick?"  
  
"No, she was like flirting with me or something."  
  
"Excuse me?" Stephanie said taken aback, "What the hell is she trying to do flirting with MY husband?"  
  
"I don't know, I'm probably wrong, but that was the vibe that I was getting."  
  
"How dare she?!?" Stephanie said, standing up.  
  
Chris grabbed her hand, "Calm down babe, come on sit down, it was nothing really."  
  
Stephanie sat down hesitantly, "I guess we shouldn't look too much into it right. She was probably just being friendly."  
  
"Yeah, and I don't want you to get worked up."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because I don't want to upset the little one," he said, leaning down to kiss her stomach.  
  
Stephanie smiled, "You're so crazy you know that right."  
  
"Just about you and my babies."  
  
"Daddy, why kiss Mama's tummy?" Regan said, coming over to stand near the couch.  
  
"Because that's where your new brother or sister is," he explained to her.  
  
"Hi," she called out to Stephanie's stomach.  
  
Chris and Stephanie smiled at each other as Regan continued to stare at Stephanie's stomach. There was a knock on the door before Vince came waltzing into the room. Chris and Stephanie stood up out of habit. Vince was always so intimidating they always felt like a couple of high schoolers who just got caught making out.  
  
"Hi Daddy," Stephanie said.  
  
"Stephanie, I think that's the first time you've called me Daddy since you got back," Vince said smiling.  
  
Stephanie looked at Chris worriedly, "Well, I just remembered that I used to call you that."  
  
"That's great Princess," he said, coming over to hug her. She hugged him back.  
  
"So Vince, to what do we owe the visit?" Chris asked.  
  
"Well, I was thinking about doing a new storyline for you Chris, and I wanted to get your input on the subject."  
  
"I don't remember discussing any new storylines," Stephanie commented, "At least not at the last meeting."  
  
"Yes, I know, but I was talking to some of the writers and they feel that you need a valet of some sort Chris, especially going into your feud with Hunter. And since he has Victoria on his side, we figured you would need someone."  
  
"Who'd you have in mind Vince?" Chris asked, "My lovely wife Stephanie?"  
  
"Well, she was the first person that came to mind actually, but we had to scrap that idea."  
  
"Why?" Stephanie said.  
  
"Because I don't want you going out there while you're pregnant," Vince said.  
  
"He's got a good point Steph," Chris said, turning to her and putting his hand on her stomach, "It's better for the little one if you stay backstage."  
  
"That's fine."  
  
"So who did you decide?"  
  
"We're putting you with Trish," Vince told them.  
  
"Ok, sounds good," Chris said, not at all worried about being paired up with Trish, "Is this going to be a romance type thing?"  
  
He asked because in the WWE storylines, Chris and Stephanie weren't married. Yes, they had been together before on the show, and yes people knew they were married in real life, but since Stephanie had come back she had yet to make an appearance on WWE television, opting to stay backstage. It was mostly because she didn't have a memory and couldn't be the Stephanie character they knew she could be. And now that she could, she was pregnant and the ring was not the best place for her.  
  
"We're thinking it will be, if that's ok with the both of you?"  
  
"Yeah, fine with me," Chris shrugged, "You Steph?"  
  
"Yeah, fine," she said, nodding.  
  
"Great, I'll try to start that storyline as soon as possible," he said, "I'll see you later, but first, Regan, can Grandpa get a hug?"  
  
Regan looked up from her spot on the floor, where she was playing with all her wrestling action figures. She got up and ran over to the kneeling Vince and threw her little arms around his neck.  
  
"Hi Gampa," she said cutely.  
  
"How's my beautiful little girl?"  
  
"Good, I come with you?"  
  
"If that's ok with Mommy and Daddy," Vince said.  
  
"You can go," Stephanie said.  
  
"Yay," she cried.  
  
Vince stood up and took Regan by the hand. She waved at her parents before going off to watch Vince work. As soon as he was gone, they sat on the couch once again.  
  
"I'm glad they didn't decide to put you with me, I don't want you or the baby getting hurt."  
  
"It's fine, I'll live, and besides, I had to do the same thing with Regan, but that was harder because I was on TV then."  
  
"Yeah, I know," he said, kissing her temple, "And you really don't have a problem that they're pairing me with Trish?"  
  
"Nah, she's just a friend, no worries." 


	4. Chapter 4

Trish was all smiles. She was actually getting put into a storyline with Chris Jericho. God, things were just going her way. She felt like she was on top of the world. She was going to get in that family, and milk them for all they were worth. She could picture the mountains of beautiful things she would buy.  
  
"Hey Trish," Stephanie said from behind the blonde.  
  
Trish put on a fake smile and turned around, "Stephanie, hello."  
  
"Hey, you do know about tonight's plans right Trish?"  
  
"Oh, I'm not sure, why don't you enlighten me?"  
  
"Well, you have a match with Victoria tonight, and Steven Richards is going to come down and assault you with a kendo stick."  
  
"Ok, sounds good."  
  
"Then Chris is going to come down and save you."  
  
"Oh, ok."  
  
"And then he'll carry you backstage, and then you'll kiss him as a kind of thank you. He'll play surprised, and that's how we're going to introduce your storyline."  
  
"Wow, I didn't know we were going to start with kissing," Trish said, almost smirking, but holding it in.  
  
"Yeah, we decided to go straight into the storyline, gives Chris a new dynamic you know."  
  
"Yeah, now why aren't you playing this part, you are his wife."  
  
"Well, Chris doesn't want me to go out there," she answered, patting her stomach, "He's worried about us."  
  
"Isn't that sweet," Trish said, smiling coyly, but inside she wanted to puke her guts out.  
  
"Well, he's just nervous, that's all. I guess I don't blame him."  
  
"Yeah, don't want to get hurt now."  
  
"Yeah, so are you ok with kissing Chris?"  
  
"Of course I'm fine with it," then Trish mumbled, "Won't be the first time."  
  
"What?" Stephanie said, not hearing her.  
  
"Nothing, so how are you and the baby?"  
  
"We're good," Stephanie said weirdly, thinking about what Trish had muttered.  
  
Truth be told, Stephanie had her the words that she had mumbled. They puzzled her, it wouldn't be the first time doing what? Kissing Chris? Having a storyline with him? She didn't want to press the issue though.  
  
"That's good, you know I'm sure Chris is just thrilled about the baby."  
  
"Yeah, he is."  
  
"He always said he wanted a big family. I mean he would tell me all the time."  
  
"Oh, when was this?" Stephanie asked.  
  
"While you were gone. We talked a lot, you could say that I was his confidante, we got really close."  
  
"That's good that he could rely on so many people," Stephanie said nonchalantly. She was going to have a little talk with her husband.  
  
"Well, I have to go stretch for my match, don't want to be stiff out there."  
  
"No, I guess not."  
  
Stephanie walked back to her dressing room. She opened the door and saw Chris and Regan playing on the ground. Chris was holding his own action figure while Regan held Kurt's. They were having some sort of mock wrestling match. Stephanie watched for a moment before speaking.  
  
"Chris, can I talk to you for a second?"  
  
"Of course baby," he said, getting up, "I'll be right back Princess."  
  
"K Daddy," Regan said, not even looking up.  
  
Chris walked over to Stephanie and gathered her up in his arms, "What's up beautiful?"  
  
"I just had an interesting chat with Trish," she told him.  
  
"About the storyline?"  
  
"Among other things."  
  
"What other things?"  
  
"Were you close to her when I was gone?" Stephanie asked.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"Like close friends."  
  
"No, not really, I was mostly friends with Kurt, RVD, and Christian, why?"  
  
"Oh, well, she said you had told her you wanted a big family. I just thought that was peculiar."  
  
"No, especially because I never wanted a big family, I'm fine with two kids," he said.  
  
"Then why would she say that?"  
  
"I have no idea. What else did she say?"  
  
"Well, I asked if she was comfortable kissing you and she said it wouldn't be the first time? Did you have a storyline with her while I was gone?"  
  
"Yeah, I did, we had a brief little one, she was paired with Benoit, and I was feuding with him."  
  
"Oh, that's what she probably meant then. I just misunderstood," Stephanie said, shrugging. She was looking too much into things.  
  
"So, when do I have to go save her?"  
  
Stephanie looked at her watch, "Damn, like right now. Go ahead and get out there."  
  
Chris kissed her quickly, "Wish me luck."  
  
"Good luck," Stephanie laughed as she watched him rush out of there.  
  
"Mama, come play?" Regan said from her spot on the floor.  
  
"Baby, Mommy has to work, but you want to come with me?"  
  
"Yeah!"  
  
"Come on then cutie," Stephanie said, holding out her hand.  
  
Regan ran over and took Stephanie's hand. Together they walked over to the gorilla where Chris's segment with Trish would take place. As Chris was out saving Trish, Stephanie made sure all the lighting was correct, and that the camera crew was ready and in place.  
  
"Ok, everyone ready?" Stephanie asked as she saw Chris start to carry Trish up the ramp, "Be ready everyone."  
  
She and Regan went to stand just out of camera shot. Stephanie kept her eye on the monitor as Chris carried Trish up the ramp and backstage. She watched as they caught Chris taking her down the steps and setting her down.  
  
"You ok Trish?" Chris said.  
  
"Yeah, thanks to you."  
  
"Just helping the damsel-in-distress," he joked.  
  
Trish then put her hand on his cheek and leaned in to kiss him. Chris pretended to have a stunned look on his face, before going to kiss her. Stephanie watched on, checking the time when she could yell cut. This promo was going great. She checked her watch again.  
  
"And cut everyone," she said, "Great job."  
  
Trish tried to let her lips linger on Chris's, but as soon as Stephanie had yelled cut, he had pulled away. His lips were so soft, she hadn't been expecting that. And he was such a good kisser. But it didn't last long enough for her to make it into a real kiss. Next time she'd slip him a little tongue. His new prudish Stephanie probably wasn't as exciting.  
  
She turned to see Chris go right over to Stephanie and pick up Regan who was holding her arms out to her. She admitted this was going to be hard tearing them apart. But she was determined to do it, and she would.  
  
"How did it look?" Chris asked.  
  
"Great, you did a good job."  
  
Chris smiled, "I just pretended it was you."  
  
"Good strategy."  
  
"I like to think so," Chris winked.  
  
"Here, how bout I give you some of the real stuff?"  
  
"I'd like that very much," he grinned like a little kid.  
  
Stephanie leaned up and kissed him squarely on the lips. He deepened the kiss as they stood there. They both couldn't see Trish roll her eyes and storm away in a huff. Kurt happened by and saw them.  
  
"Don't you ever quit?"  
  
Chris pulled away, "I told you Kurt, I have to make up for lost time."  
  
"Kurt!" Regan yelled happily.  
  
"My favorite girl in the whole world," Kurt responded.  
  
Regan smiled, "Kurt, I wanna go with you."  
  
"Go ahead, take her Kurt, we don't want her anymore," Chris joked.  
  
Regan pouted, "Daddy?"  
  
"I'm just kidding Princess, you go have fun with Kurt ok?" he said, putting her down.  
  
"We always do, don't we Regan," Kurt said, taking her hand.  
  
"Kurt, you gonna steal my new baby's heart too?"  
  
"You can bet on it, I can't help that your kid loves me more than you," Kurt said as Regan dragged him off.  
  
"Trish looked a little too into that kiss don't you think?" Chris said, looking at the monitor where they were just now showing it to the audience.  
  
"You think?"  
  
"Well, I think she did try to make it an open mouth kiss."  
  
"Oh get over yourself, she did not."  
  
"I think she did."  
  
"Chris, you're imagining things." 


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Thanks so much for the wonderful reviews guys, I'm glad you're enjoying the sequel, and I hope it's not too off base from the first one. :)  
  
~  
  
"So what do I have planned tonight?"  
  
"A match against Kane with a little interference from Hunter and Victoria, and a promo with Trish," she answered.  
  
"That it?"  
  
"Uh huh."  
  
"Sorry I couldn't be at your doctor's appointment today," Chris said, rubbing the slight bulge of Stephanie's stomach.  
  
"It's ok, my dad just didn't have any other time to schedule a meeting with you, that's all."  
  
"What did the doctor say?"  
  
"Everything looks good, he did an ultrasound."  
  
"Ooh, lemme see," Chris said anxiously.  
  
Stephanie laughed and got off of Chris's lap. She went over to her purse and went looking through it. She found the sonogram picture and took it out. She walked back to Chris and sat down on his lap again. She handed him the picture.  
  
"There's the newest addition to the Jericho household," she grinned.  
  
"Remember when Regan was born?" Chris said.  
  
"Of course I do, I can remember everything you know," she smirked.  
  
Chris didn't think his grin could get any wider, "I love that."  
  
"And I love you. I remember you breaking your hand while tripping over the sofa cause you were in such a panic."  
  
"I never had a baby before, it was understandable," he chuckled.  
  
"You gonna be calmer with this one?"  
  
"I'll try, but I make no promises," he gazed down at the sonogram, "What do you want it to be?"  
  
"A baby."  
  
Chris rolled his eyes, "You know what I mean weirdo."  
  
"Don't call me a weirdo, you're a weirdo."  
  
"Well, you're a bitch."  
  
"You're an ass."  
  
"I kind of want a boy," Chris said, looking up at her.  
  
"Well, surprise, surprise," Stephanie said sarcastically.  
  
"Shut up," he said jokingly.  
  
"A boy would be nice. Regan would have a little brother to take care of."  
  
"She's going to love having a baby around the house. She always loves when she gets to see Sam."  
  
"Yeah, she'll be a great big sister."  
  
"Promise you won't go and die on me so I don't have to raise two kids by myself?"  
  
She shoved him, "I hate you."  
  
"Oh, I know you do Stephy, but you're stuck with me...forever."  
  
"Why oh why did I ever agree to marry you?" she said in a mock woeful tone.  
  
"Because you wanted all the Jericho lovin'."  
  
"Oh dear God, I came back for this?"  
  
Chris chuckled and kissed her, "Of course you did, you couldn't stand to be away from me any longer."  
  
Stephanie kissed him again, "Shut up."  
  
"Mmm, I'd love to continue this, but don't I have to work? You know earn a paycheck."  
  
"Please, you're married to me, you know you don't even have to work ever again."  
  
"I know, but I like what I do, so am I up next?"  
  
"Yeah, but we've got a few minutes," she answered, kissing him more.  
  
"How's the storyline doing anyways?"  
  
"It's going well, I think that the fans are really behind you going into the big match against Hunter."  
  
"That's good, we have been feuding for a month."  
  
"Yeah, and you've been stuck with Trish for a month," she laughed.  
  
"I swear, I think she puts too much oomph into our kisses."  
  
"Eh, it's acting."  
  
"Well, I always put a little something into our kisses," Chris winked.  
  
"Yeah, you're tongue," she said getting up.  
  
"Hey, my lap is cold now."  
  
"Oh no sweetheart, I think things are pretty hot down there, don't you think?" she said, eyeing him.  
  
"You know, it's times like these that I kind of miss you without your memory."  
  
She gave him a dirty look, "Get out there and make me proud....asshole."  
  
"What was that Steph?"  
  
"Nothing dear," she said storming out of the dressing room.  
  
Chris ran after her, knowing she wasn't really mad, but she always loved to play the fact that she was. She could sense him behind her and started to walk a little faster. Chris followed her. She tried not to laugh as she stopped and turned around, pretending to send him a death glare, Stephanie style.  
  
"Oh please baby forgive me?" he mock begged, but to anyone but Stephanie, it would sound real.  
  
"No, I'm not forgiving you," she said firmly.  
  
Trish heard something as she walked to the gorilla, she had to be out there for Chris's match. She walked around the corner and saw Chris and Stephanie in what appeared to be a heated argument. She stopped, snuck back around the corner, and decided to eavesdrop.  
  
"I'm so sorry baby."  
  
"Don't care."  
  
"I don't want to lose you," Chris said, way over-the-top.  
  
"Too late."  
  
"Fine," Chris said, "Be that way, I don't want you anyways."  
  
"Good, that's makes leaving you easier."  
  
Trish's jaw dropped. This was too simple, everything was going her way. After a month of flirting with Chris, of kissing him with more than acting intentions, she was finally breaking through. Seemed like Chris and little Miss Stephanie were calling it quits. Of course, if Trish had been smart, she would have looked around the corner to the two people she had just been listening to.  
  
Chris took Stephanie into his arms and whispered, "I love you."  
  
"I love you too," she whispered.  
  
"I know, don't forget that Regan is with your mother."  
  
"Chris, I know," she told him softly, "Good luck out there."  
  
"Luck, I don't need luck," he said, kissing her.  
  
Stephanie left to go get Regan. Chris stood there, casually tying his hair back for his match. Trish took a deep breath, put on a smile and walked towards him. Chris didn't see her until she was right next to him.  
  
"Oh, hey Trish," Chris said, looking over at her.  
  
"Hi Chris, how are you?" she said, trying to play like she was concerned.  
  
Chris eyed her strangely, "I'm fine...how are you?"  
  
"I'm good, I heard that little falling out you and Stephanie just had," she said sympathetically.  
  
"Oh that," Chris laughed, "That was just--"  
  
"It's ok, you don't have to talk about it," she said, rubbing her hand on his shoulder.  
  
Chris pulled away from her, "I don't think you get it Trish."  
  
"Chris, shh," she said, pressing her fingers to his lips, "You don't have to say anything, it'll be ok."  
  
Chris looked at her like she was crazy, "Ok, whatever you say."  
  
He started walking towards the gorilla to get ready to go out for his match. Trish noticed something fall from the top of his tights. She went over to pick it up, then looked up at Chris.  
  
"Chris, you dropped something," she called out.  
  
He looked back and came over, "Oh, thanks."  
  
"What is it?" she asked innocently.  
  
He held it up proudly, "That's my baby."  
  
"Oh, nice," Trish said, wanting to gag, "What are you doing with it?"  
  
"I'm taking it out with me, you know good luck and all that. Stephanie had an ultrasound today," Chris said, his grin getting wider by the second.  
  
"Oh look, it's time for your match. Come on," she said blandly, walking ahead of him.  
  
Chris tucked the picture back into his tights for good luck. He went to stand next to Trish, to wait for his entrance. He didn't notice the glower that Trish had on her face. She didn't want to physically hurt Stephanie, she wasn't that cruel, but that baby was going to be the death knell to her entire plan. She needed Stephanie to leave, and she needed Stephanie to leave now.  
  
The hard part was how was she going to do that? She watched as Chris went out there, turning his back to the crowd. When he motioned for her, she walked out, her usual bright smile on her face. But beneath that smile lived a sinister soul. She walked to the apron where she had decided to stay for the duration of Chris's match.  
  
She tried to act interested, it being her job and all, but she had bigger things on her mind. Halfway through the match an idea dawned on her. A good idea, if she thought so herself. As Jericho got the pin, she smiled, not for his win, but for how he'd be all hers sooner rather than later.  
  
She followed him up the ramp and then backstage. She admired how the sweat glistened against his oiled skin. She shook her head, she couldn't fall for Chris, she just wanted his money, the McMahon money, the McMahon fortune.  
  
Chris went backstage, smiling after what he thought was a decent match against Kane. Kane was a big, lumbering guy, and he was a little slow in the ring, but for the most part Chris was pleased with the match. He saw Stephanie waiting for him and he walked over to her.  
  
"Great match out there," she commented.  
  
He wiped off some of the sweat with the towel she had just handed him, "Thanks."  
  
"I think your match with Hunter at WrestleMania is going to be great."  
  
"I hope so. Don't I have a promo with Trish to film?"  
  
"No, sorry, time constraints, we have to allow time for the ending of the show."  
  
"Oh, that's fine, where's my little girl?"  
  
"With Kurt, where else?"  
  
"Oh, well, this one," Chris said, rubbing her stomach, "Brought me good luck tonight."  
  
"They did, how?"  
  
He took the picture out, "They were out there with me."  
  
"Aww, you adorable man," she said as he leaned in to kiss her.  
  
"I hate to break up this little...love fest," Trish said maliciously, "But don't we have a promo to film Chris?"  
  
"Sorry Trish, it got cut out of the show," Stephanie told her.  
  
"Oh," Trish said, annoyed, "Well, fine then. I guess you don't want to make the feud believable."  
  
With that she walked away. Chris and Stephanie watched her go, both bewildered by her actions. They looked at each other silently for a moment.  
  
"Do you get the feeling that something is up with her?" Stephanie asked seriously.  
  
"Yeah, but I can't put my finger on it."  
  
"Well, whatever crawled up her ass and died, I hope she gets it taken care of."  
  
Chris took Stephanie in his arms and laughed.  
  
"So do I." 


	6. Chapter 6

"Chris, do you think people buy our romance?"  
  
"Sure, I mean, I think they do," he said.  
  
"But I mean, you look at all the great couples that have graced the screen, do you think we even compare?"  
  
"Like who?"  
  
"Well, like Matt and Lita, or you know, Hunter and Stephanie," Trish said, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"You want to be more like them?"  
  
"Well, I just want to be convincing. Like Hunter and Stephanie, they were oh so convincing. They were together weren't they?"  
  
"Um...no, I was with Stephanie."  
  
"Oh yeah, that's right, sometimes I forget because they were so convincing playing the married couple. It's really too bad that you and Stephanie never got to play married on WWE television."  
  
"I don't think it really matters," he shrugged.  
  
Trish smiled coyly, "We need to be like they were, don't you think?"  
  
"Ok," he said hesitantly, not sure where she was going with this.  
  
"Great, I think that we should have a little wedding or something, just for show of course."  
  
Chris looked at her surprised by her proposition, "A wedding? Like get married?"  
  
"Yeah, you know solidify our partnership."  
  
"But we don't even know how long this partnership will last."  
  
"Well, then ask your wife silly."  
  
"Ok."  
  
"Go on then," she smiled.  
  
"Bye."  
  
"Bye."  
  
Chris walked off and Trish smirked as she watched him disappear down the hallway. This was only the first part of the plan. She'd get to marry Chris on television, staking her claim a little more into him. Once he was around her so much, he was bound to, slip, so to speak. And when he did, she'd be there to claim him. And maybe she'd embellish the past a little for Stephanie's benefit.  
  
Chris walked confusedly down the hallway. Trish had the craziest ideas. She was so totally into this feud. Maybe a little too much so. Didn't she realize that this was all for show? He was starting to worry about her intentions. Truth be told, this wasn't the first time he felt this vibe from her. About a year after Stephanie's alleged death, Trish had come at him pretty strong, but he was still mourning Stephanie, and didn't even think about looking at another woman.  
  
He walked into Stephanie's office for the evening, where she was talking with her father about something. He sat down on the couch, waiting for them to finish, vaguely wondering where Regan was. Most likely with Kurt, like she always was. He saw Stephanie finish up with her father and walked over to them.  
  
"Chris, hello," Vince said to him.  
  
"Hey Vince, Stephy, Trish wanted me to ask you something."  
  
"Go ahead," she said, leaning back in her chair and looking up at him.  
  
"Well, she thinks that we should get married."  
  
"What?!" she exclaimed.  
  
"Well, she said if we're going for a long-term partnership we should get married," Chris shrugged for what seemed the fiftieth time that day.  
  
"Um, what would be the point of that?"  
  
"You're asking me if I know?"  
  
"Daddy, what do you think of this?" Stephanie asked, turning to her father.  
  
"Well, it's interesting, I'll give it that, except, what about you two?"  
  
"What about us Daddy?"  
  
"Well, after this baby is born, did you want to get back on television, I mean, I know that you don't really remember being an on-camera persona, but you could ease into the role."  
  
"I don't know, if I did, who said I'd have to come back with Chris."  
  
"That's true. Well, we don't have any long-term plans set up for Trish or for you Chris, I'll have to think about this some more."  
  
"Ok, that's cool," Chris said, "Whatever you decide, I'll do. Isn't that how it goes around here?"  
  
"Yeah, but you're part of the McMahon family, we can award you a few special benefits," Vince told him on the sly.  
  
"You're just now telling me," Chris joked.  
  
"Hey, didn't want you to get too cocky knowing you're above everyone else," Vince laughed, then leaving the office.  
  
"So what do you think about this?" Chris said, sitting on Stephanie's desk, facing her.  
  
"I don't know what to think really."  
  
"Oh come on, the great Stephanie McMahon rendered clueless, be still my beating heart," Chris said dramatically.  
  
Stephanie rested both hands on her stomach, "I guess it could work, but Chris, I have a bad feeling about Trish."  
  
"You aren't the only one sweetheart."  
  
"You get it too."  
  
"I don't know really, I think she just really likes me or something. She's a little too into the storyline for my liking," Chris told her.  
  
"Yeah, maybe she just has a little crush, and we can't fault her for that can we?" Stephanie said.  
  
"Nope, because when you've got a fine specimen like me, the ladies are sure to come a-runnin."  
  
"Uh huh," Stephanie said, not impressed.  
  
"Hey, I got you didn't I?" he said, leaning over to kiss her tenderly.  
  
"That's because you were lucky."  
  
"Sure Stephy, sure."  
  
"I just don't get what a wedding would do. I mean, does she think it'll bring in ratings or something?"  
  
"Possibly, Trish thinks she's hot stuff, she did when you were gone, it was like she was the Queen bee or something," he said.  
  
"Well, I'm back now, and we all know I'm the dominant female around here," she scoffed.  
  
"Actually sweetheart, I think there's one girl who kind of rules the roost around here, sorry to burst your bubble."  
  
"Oh really? And just who is this girl, because I bet that I'm better than her in every way."  
  
"Your daughter."  
  
"Oh, ok, well, maybe you're right," Stephanie laughed.  
  
"But besides her, you're the best," he winked in her direction.  
  
"Well, thank you," she said, smiling demurely.  
  
"Always a pleasure."  
  
"So, did you want to go tell Little Miss Precious Trish that she might get her wedding after all? God, I cannot believe I just said that?"  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"You marrying Trish, oh, it's just too funny to believe."  
  
"Hey! Why is that so funny?" he asked.  
  
"Well, one, I don't know how to tell you this, really, you see, this may come as a complete shock to you. We're married."  
  
"No," he gasped, "Are you kidding me?"  
  
"No, I'm afraid I'm not, and get this, we have two kids."  
  
"Two! Wow."  
  
She laughed, "Go on, tell that wench that she's probably getting her little debacle. And go get our daughter."  
  
"Done and done, just one thing before I leave?"  
  
"What? A kiss?"  
  
"No, but that would be nice," he said, standing up then leaning down to kiss her.  
  
"Then what?"  
  
"Where is our daughter?"  
  
"With Rob," she answered.  
  
"Ok, see you in a while."  
  
Chris left the room in search of Trish. He didn't know if this whole wedding storyline would work. There hadn't been a wedding in a couple years on television. He believed the last one had been that disaster with Dawn Marie and Torrie's father. Man, that had turned out badly.  
  
And now this thing with Trish. He didn't know what the girl was up to, but he wanted to find out. She seemed so fake when she talked to him, and especially when she talked to Stephanie. If only he could get out of this storyline, but no, what was good for the business, had to be good for him.  
  
He knocked on her door, "Come in."  
  
Chris walked into the room and caught Trish in nothing but a towel, obviously taking a shower after the tag match he had had with her earlier. She turned around and smiled brightly when she saw him. Chris gave her a strained smile.  
  
"Chris, what are you doing here?"  
  
"Well, I talked to Stephanie and Vince, and they're up for a wedding thing, it's not set in stone yet or anything, but it seems like it might happen."  
  
Trish couldn't believe her plan had actually worked. She was getting the storyline. God, this family was more naïve than she could've imagined. They all thought she was just trying to improve the storylines. No, she was trying to improve her life.  
  
"That's great," she said happily.  
  
"Yeah, sure, I guess."  
  
"Now Chris," she said, walking closer to him, "You don't want the storyline?"  
  
"I just don't really see the point."  
  
"Well, it'll be good for everyone to see a nice couple in the company, we have so few of those you know," she said, her voice deepening just a bit.  
  
Chris peered at her strangely, "Yeah, but a wedding, you sure that's the way to go?"  
  
"Oh, I'm sure," she said, pulling even closer to him.  
  
Chris backed away a bit, "Um, I think I should get out of here, I'm supposed to be looking for Regan."  
  
"That can wait," she said, dropping her towel.  
  
Chris's eyes widened, then turned angry, "Trish, what the fuck are you doing?"  
  
"Towel slipped," she said innocently.  
  
"Yeah, whatever, I'm getting out of here," he said disgusted by her behavior.  
  
"Chris, I'll let you have whatever you want, and it'll be our little secret," she whispered, pulling up right behind him.  
  
He turned around, "You know what Trish, not for all the money in the world."  
  
"Don't you find me attractive Chris?" she said, reaching for his hand, which he pulled away quickly.  
  
"No."  
  
With that, he made his escape. He couldn't believe that had just happened. Trish had blatantly come on to him, going so far as to walk around naked, offering herself up to him. He quickly made his way to RVD's locker room to pick up Regan, before heading back to Stephanie's office, where he walked inside.  
  
"Hey, there's my baby," Stephanie said, holding her arms open to Regan.  
  
"Mama," Regan cried, running over to her and letting Stephanie pick her up.  
  
"Did you have fun with Rob?"  
  
"Yup, we watched Kurt wrestle at the gowilla with Gampa," she said happily.  
  
"Ooh, sounds like fun," Stephanie said enthusiastically, then she turned to Chris, "Chris, you ok, you look weird."  
  
"Something weird just happened."  
  
"What?"  
  
"I don't think this is something we should discuss here. Can we talk about it later?"  
  
"Absolutely." 


	7. Chapter 7

"So what was this something weird that happened?"  
  
"Well, I don't know how to explain it."  
  
"Well, take your time," she said.  
  
"Trish definitely tried to seduce me," Chris said.  
  
"Oh, come on Chris, you were probably misinterpreting her or something."  
  
"Steph, she walked around naked in front of me."  
  
"What?" Stephanie yelled, then remembered Regan was sleeping in the next room, and changed her tone to a whisper, "What are you talking about?"  
  
"Just what I said, I went in to tell her that you guys were considering the storyline, and then she just dropped her towel and tried to get me to touch her."  
  
"Oh, that's it! That bitch won't know what hit her," Stephanie said, with poison in her voice.  
  
"Steph, babe, calm down," Chris said, getting up and walking over to her.  
  
"Calm down?!? How can I calm down when this-this bitch is trying to steal my husband?"  
  
"Ok, I know that it's not cool, but Stephanie, you're pregnant, this isn't good for the baby, remember what almost happened with Regan?"  
  
Stephanie thought back to when she was pregnant with Regan. She had let herself get caught in a crossfire between two arguing parties and it almost cost her, her daughter. Her temper had flared and her blood pressure had risen dangerously high, almost making her lose Regan.  
  
Stephanie took a deep breath to calm herself, "You're right, I'm sorry."  
  
"It's ok, I just don't want anything to happen to the two of you. It scares me, I know you have a temper babe, but you can't put yourself at risk."  
  
She hugged him, "I know, and I don't want you to worry."  
  
"So what are we going to do about this?"  
  
"I say we wait it out. I don't want to just jump to conclusions. I mean, yeah, her stripping in front of you is a pretty obvious sign, but I want to see what's up with her before I know what I'm going to do."  
  
"Ok, we'll let it happen and see."  
  
"Ok, and I promise I won't let my temper get in the way."  
  
"Even better."  
  
The next day Trish walked into the arena purposefully. Well, Chris hadn't liked her little show for him yesterday, but that was fine, she'd just have to hit another target. A more fragile target that was sure to crumble.  
  
It really was sad she was going to have to destroy Stephanie to get to Chris. But Stephanie didn't even remember who the hell she was. What would she care if she left Chris and Regan? Or even if after this little rugrat was born she might give that one up to Chris too? Trish didn't want kids at all, couldn't really stand them, but if it meant millions, she'd put up with them until she could send them off to some far away boarding school.  
  
Chris and Stephanie sat in their dressing room with Regan. She was sitting on Chris's lap as he and Stephanie talked about the upcoming storyline. Vince had come in earlier to say that they would like to go through with this wedding angle.  
  
"It'll be ok, we just pretend to get married, have a few laughs, then we can have the staged break up," Chris told her.  
  
"Still doesn't mean I like to think of her marrying you."  
  
"Daddy? Who marry?" Regan asked.  
  
"Daddy might marry Trish on screen Princess."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"For the story," Stephanie explained.  
  
"Oh, but Daddy, you love Mommy," Regan said, looking up at him.  
  
"Of course I do, it's just pretend."  
  
"Oh," she said, nodding, though she probably didn't know what she meant at all.  
  
"Yeah, just keep telling myself that," Stephanie said, "It's all pretend, even though I'm sure she'd love to make it real."  
  
"Not in this lifetime babe, I wouldn't let it happen."  
  
"I know."  
  
"There's no way I'd give you up and I just got you back."  
  
"Yeah, I know."  
  
"So I guess I have to go tell her that she's getting her way?"  
  
"I guess," Stephanie sighed, "Regan and I will wait here."  
  
"Ok," he said, leaning over to kiss her, "Wish me luck."  
  
"Good luck, I hope she doesn't drop any other articles of clothing around you."  
  
"I'll make sure she doesn't."  
  
"I hope she listens."  
  
Chris walked out of the room and down to the diva's locker room. He knocked on the door and waited for Trish to answer. This time he wouldn't make the stupid mistake of going into her locker room. This woman was not going to compromise him anymore.  
  
"Chris, hello," Trish said huskily.  
  
"Trish, you're getting your way ok. You're getting your damn wedding."  
  
"Yay," she squealed, then hugged him impulsively.  
  
"Don't touch me," he snapped.  
  
"Oh Chris, don't be such a worrywart, I'm not going to put any moves on you, I swear," she said innocently.  
  
"Trish, I don't know what you're trying to pull, but it's not going to work."  
  
"Why Chris, whatever do you mean?"  
  
"You walking around naked in front of me ring any bells? I don't love you Trish, I don't even like you right now, so stay out of my business and my wife's business when we're not onscreen."  
  
"Fine," she said curtly.  
  
"Good, I'm glad we understand each other."  
  
She rolled her eyes, "Whatever."  
  
"Good bye," he said shortly before taking his leave.  
  
He walked back to his locker room and walked inside expecting to find Stephanie and Regan on the other side. Instead he found them gone. They must have gone to catering or Regan had wanted to go see Kurt or someone. He sat down to wait for them.  
  
Stephanie and Regan were walking down the hallway after Stephanie had declared herself thirsty and they had gone to get some water. She saw the door to Trish's locker room slightly ajar and heard her having a conversation. She felt bad for doing this, but well, not too bad.  
  
"Yeah, we did."  
  
Stephanie heard silence which could only mean whoever Trish was talking to was speaking.  
  
"Yeah, Chris Jericho and I dated for a while after Stephanie died."  
  
Stephanie couldn't believer her ears. Chris and Trish?!?  
  
"He was even going to propose to me, but he feared what people would think about the two of us getting married so soon after Stephanie's untimely demise."  
  
Propose? He was going to propose to Trish? What the hell?  
  
"Yeah, he even said I made a great mother to Regan."  
  
Stephanie kept listening.  
  
"Yeah, and he wasn't too bad in bed."  
  
Stephanie gritted her teeth.  
  
"Yeah, but then Stephanie came back and he decided to do the right thing and stick with her. He did tell me he would love only me for the rest of his life and he would wish that Stephanie was me every day until he died. Isn't that sweet?"  
  
Stephanie bit her lip brutally, and practically pulled Regan down the hallway. Trish hung up her phone and walked out and stood in the doorway. God, that was easy to set up. She had seen Stephanie walking down the hallway, and knew that if she heard Chris's name she would listen. Stephanie would want to know everything about the husband she couldn't remember. Even if she had to lie a little.  
  
Stephanie went into her locker room and saw Chris sitting there, leaning against the back of the couch, his eyes closed. Regan went over to play with her toys as Stephanie went to stand in front of Chris. He sensed her presence and opened his eyes, smiling up at her.  
  
"Hey, where'd you go?"  
  
"Please tell me you've never been with Trish."  
  
"I've never been with Trish," he said a little bit confused.  
  
"And is that the truth?"  
  
"Yeah, I've never been with her."  
  
"She said that you guys dated while I was gone."  
  
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, I didn't date anyone while you were gone, I had a hard enough time accepting you were gone, I couldn't even look at another woman," he said, standing up in front of her.  
  
"She said that you said you would always love her."  
  
"I've never loved her a day in my life."  
  
"She said you said that she was a great mother to Regan."  
  
"Um, she's barely been around Regan, Kurt makes a better mother than her."  
  
"She said you were going to propose to her."  
  
"Um, not a chance, since I kept my vows to you."  
  
"So she just told a bold-faced lie?"  
  
Chris looked at Stephanie. She wasn't angry it seemed. It seemed like she had a cool confidence about her. Like she already knew that this was all false, but that she needed him to say it was false. And of course it was false.  
  
No matter how many times he said it, he didn't think that Stephanie would ever get just how much he had missed her. He could say he did, but she would never know about the days where he literally had to drag himself out of bed because he didn't want to go another day without her.  
  
"She lied Steph, those are all lies."  
  
"And you swear on everything you've ever loved?"  
  
"I swear," he said, putting his hand over his heart.  
  
"Then I know what we're going to do," she said coolly.  
  
"What?"  
  
"The bitch....is going down." 


	8. Chapter 8

Stephanie paced back and forth in the hotel room. She was still fuming about what Trish had so obviously lied about. Chris watched her walk back and forth. She had been like this for the past half hour. Chris didn't want to interrupt her since she seemed to be thinking very hard, but he was starting to wonder what was going on in that pretty little head of hers.  
  
"Steph?"  
  
"Shh Chris, I'm thinking," she said, dismissing him.  
  
"But you've been thinking for the past half hour."  
  
"I know."  
  
"And?"  
  
"And what?"  
  
"Have you come up with anything?"  
  
"I think I have," she said, coming over to sit on his lap.  
  
"Are you going to tell me?"  
  
"Of course I'll tell you, but let's talk first."  
  
"Talk about what?" he asked.  
  
"About just what did happen while I was gone," she said, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Why do you want to talk about that?"  
  
"Because there's things I don't know about you Chris Jericho, and I don't like it one bit. I'm supposed to know everything about you."  
  
"What do you want to know?"  
  
"Everything."  
  
"Fine, ask away," he told her, "I've got nothing to hide from you. Never have."  
  
"How did you find out that I died?"  
  
Unwillingly tears came to Chris's eyes as he remembered that day. Even though Stephanie was here sitting in his lap, it still hurt when he thought back to that day. He had known what it was like to lose her, and it didn't feel good at all. "Steph, do we have to talk about that?"  
  
"I want to know."  
  
"But it's hard to think about," he said, his voice cracking.  
  
"I'm sorry baby," she said, realizing how hard it was for him to talk about, "but it's ok now, look I'm right here."  
  
"But you weren't there Stephanie. You weren't, and...I just.....it's hard to talk about."  
  
"Ok baby, shh," Stephanie said, kissing him.  
  
He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to him. She buried her head in his neck and he just held her. He didn't think he'd ever get used to having her back in his arms. Every day it was like a gift just to have her with him.  
  
"Thanks baby, maybe someday I'll tell you."  
  
"That's fine."  
  
"So can I hear your plan?"  
  
"Did you ever date anyone at all while I was gone?" she asked, ignoring his question.  
  
"No, I don't think I even looked at another woman. I just couldn't....now what is this plan?"  
  
"Chris, I want you to trust me on this one ok?"  
  
"Ok, I always trust you."  
  
"Chris, we need to break up," she said.  
  
Chris looked at her, his eyes wide. He looked at her confused. She looked at him, a smile on her face. Chris looked at her confused, as he also saw that calculating look in her eye. That look could scare the bejeesus out of anyone, even her own husband.  
  
"Um, excuse me?" he said.  
  
"You heard what I said."  
  
"But-but...excuse me?" he said again.  
  
"I'm just kidding with you of course," she said.  
  
Chris let out a breath, "Don't EVER do that to me again!"  
  
Stephanie laughed, "I'm sorry baby, but your face was priceless."  
  
"Still, don't ever joke like that," he said, his heart still pounding.  
  
"Awww, I'm really sorry," she said, kissing his cheek, "But that's the plan."  
  
"What's the plan?"  
  
"We're going to break up...or at least to pretend to."  
  
"Stephanie, what are you thinking?"  
  
Stephanie smirked. She wasn't going to let this little bitch try and run her life. Nobody ran Stephanie's life but her, and maybe her kids. But no one else. And now Trish was trying to swoop in and take everything away from her. Not going to happen, not on her watch.  
  
"We're going to give Trish everything she's ever wanted," Stephanie said in a sinister voice.  
  
"You mean me?"  
  
"Oh no baby, it's not just you she wants. She wants the McMahon name and she thinks if she gets with you, she'll get that."  
  
"How did you figure that?"  
  
"Sweetie, I know how she thinks because let's face it, she's pretty transparent. She wants the money I'm sure. Stupid bitch."  
  
"And so we break up?"  
  
"No, not really, but we make it look like we're breaking up."  
  
"How?"  
  
"We get in a few staged fights, spend a few nights apart, make it seem like we're falling apart."  
  
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait, what do you mean a few nights apart?"  
  
"Well, we have to make this believable don't we?"  
  
"But I don't wanna be apart from you?"  
  
"Oh come on Chris, don't you think it'll be worth it in the end?"  
  
"I guess, but Steph, I don't really want to lose you or anything."  
  
"You won't baby, I promise. We just make it seem like we're breaking up, and then we spring it on her."  
  
"I guess I can go along with it?"  
  
"Good. It'll be fun."  
  
"Steph, I don't want Regan to be affected by any of this. I'm willing to do whatever it takes to bring Trish down, but I don't Regan to have any part in this."  
  
"I promise she won't."  
  
"Ok, she's-she's all I had left you know, she's my little girl and I just want to protect her," he said seriously.  
  
"Chris, I know, and don't worry, she won't be affected by any of this, I swear. And neither will this little one," she said, touching her stomach gently.  
  
Chris smiled, "So what are we going to do first?"  
  
"Well, here's the plan..."  
  
***************  
  
"Chris, shut up!" Stephanie shouted.  
  
"No Stephanie, I'm tired of listening to your shit ok. You think it wasn't hard for me to be without you."  
  
"At least you could remember!"  
  
Trish walked up to the door. She had been coming to get Chris so they could go out there for their match. Little did she know what she would come upon. Seemed the lovebirds were having their first real spat. And Trish couldn't have been more pleased.  
  
"Yeah, but it fucking hurt!"  
  
"Well, you try walking around not knowing who the fuck you are, it's not a fucking walk in the park!"  
  
"God Stephanie, you turned into some kind of bitch in the past two years, I don't even know why I would want to find you."  
  
"Fine, be that way! Maybe I'll fall out of love with you Chris! Or better yet, maybe I'll get attacked again so I can forget I'm married a miserable ass like you!"  
  
Trish laughed, this was good, the two were at each other's throats. Inside though, Stephanie and Chris were sitting together on the couch, Chris with his arms around Stephanie as she leaned her head on his shoulder.  
  
"Me? What about you? You're a shell of your former self, you're not even worthy to be called Stephanie!"  
  
"You know what Jericho," Stephanie spat out, "I hate you!"  
  
"Right back at you, you stupid little bitch."  
  
Everything quieted down and Trish could only figure that this particular argument was over. She smirked to herself, things were going downhill fast for the newly reunited couple. She shook her head and knocked on the door.  
  
Stephanie and Chris broke apart from the kiss that they were sharing. Stephanie looked up at Chris and smiled. He leaned down and kissed her forehead, then leaned down even farther to kiss her stomach where their baby was residing.  
  
"Good job," she whispered.  
  
"Thanks," he whispered back, before going to open the door.  
  
"Chris, our match is next."  
  
"Good, I don't like the present company," he said, shooting daggers at Stephanie.  
  
"It'll be ok," Trish said, taking his hand and sending a smug grin back to Stephanie.  
  
Stephanie watched them walk away, and as soon as they were out of sight, her own smug grin crossed her face. Trish would never know what hit her. The plan was going right according to schedule. She went off to go get Regan from her brother.  
  
Later on that evening, Chris walked into his hotel room where Regan and Stephanie were playing on the floor. Chris looked at them and smiled, soon joining them. Stephanie leaned over and kissed him.  
  
"How was your evening?"  
  
"Good, pretended to pour my heart out to her, but didn't let it all out like you told me to. She bought every single line."  
  
"Great, and she totally bought our little fight?"  
  
"Absolutely."  
  
"Daddy?" Regan said.  
  
"Yes Princess?"  
  
"You no like Twish?"  
  
He picked her up and sat her in his lap, "She's a mean woman Princess, Mommy and Daddy don't think she's nice."  
  
"Oh, I nice Daddy," she said proudly.  
  
"You're the nicest little girl in the world."  
  
She grinned and played with her toys, "Thank you."  
  
"You're welcome Princess," he turned back to Stephanie, "You don't think she'll try to do something with Regan do you?"  
  
"No, she wouldn't even dare, but maybe we should just keep a close eye on her?" Stephanie said, looking at her little girl.  
  
"Yeah, you're right," Chris said, kissing Regan's head.  
  
"You know what the one thing is that could work to our advantage baby?" Stephanie asked.  
  
"What?"  
  
"I can't believe I didn't really think of this before."  
  
"What?" he repeated.  
  
"Trish doesn't know I have my memory back, and what Trish doesn't know....can and WILL hurt her." 


	9. Chapter 9

Stephanie and Chris lay in bed. Stephanie was cuddling up to him as he ran his fingers through her hair softly. She yawned and closed her eyes running her finger up and down Chris's arm. She sighed to herself and Chris looked down at the top of her head.  
  
"Stephanie, what's wrong?" Chris asked.  
  
"It's nothing."  
  
"Don't lie to me."  
  
"I just wish that everything would be back to normal."  
  
"Normal? Do we even know what that is anymore, cause I was under the impression that we didn't."  
  
Stephanie laughed, "I guess we don't. I guess we never did, but when did Trish become such a bitch."  
  
"Couldn't tell you."  
  
"But why did she target us?"  
  
"I don't know sweetie, I really don't."  
  
"I wish we didn't have to come up with this silly plan, just to preserve everything we hold dear."  
  
"I know, so do I, but I guess we have to go through the necessary evils."  
  
"I guess so. So what are we going to do tomorrow at the SmackDown tapings?"  
  
"Well, I say we have another fight, but how about this time, I go off with her to a club or something after the show, and I pretend to let out my feelings for you."  
  
"Ok, sounds like a plan, but how did you come up with that so fast? You don't secretly want to do that do you?"  
  
"No, of course not, but I learned the tricks of the trade from the best," he said, kissing the top of her head.  
  
"I'm glad...so what should we fight about?"  
  
"How about we fight about Regan and how you missed so much of her life."  
  
"Ok," Stephanie said, a little sullenly.  
  
"Steph, is that ok with you?"  
  
"Yeah, it's fine, why wouldn't it be fine?"  
  
"Because I can tell it's not."  
  
"It's just the truth, I did miss out on so much in her life. I missed her first birthday, her first steps, her first word, the first wrestling match she ever got to enjoy."  
  
"I know baby, but we can't help that. I think we should just be thankful that you came back and you get to enjoy all her milestones from here on out."  
  
"Like what? I missed all the good stuff."  
  
"No you didn't, you still get the first day of school, her first boyfriend, her high school graduation, when she gets married, has kids."  
  
"You're right, and I get to do all the stuff I missed with this little one," Stephanie said, referring to her unborn child.  
  
"Yeah, and it'll be great, and you get to experience it all for the first time."  
  
Stephanie smiled, "How do you do that?"  
  
"How do I do what exactly?"  
  
"You make even my worst problems seem so miniscule and that they can be easily solved."  
  
"Because they can, if you really think about it."  
  
"Yeah, they are...except for this problem with Trish."  
  
"Don't worry about that, it'll all be over soon."  
  
"I hope so."  
  
******************  
  
"I can't believe you!" she yelled.  
  
"She's my daughter Stephanie!"  
  
"She's my daughter too!"  
  
"Yeah, you can't even remember her at all, how can you love someone you can't even fucking remember!?!"  
  
"Why don't you try to stop telling me what to feel and what not to feel?"  
  
"You know what, I don't give a flying fuck what you feel. I'm sick and tired of you trying to act like you're the old Stephanie, you aren't ok, and you never will be."  
  
Chris stormed out of the dressing room, and ran right into Trish. She looked surprised for a moment before she put on a little sympathetic smile. Chris looked down at her and smiled.  
  
"I couldn't help but overhear what was happening."  
  
"Yeah," Chris scoffed, "I can barely talk to her anymore."  
  
"I guess that you're going through a tough time huh?"  
  
"Yeah, some days it's like I wish I had never found her."  
  
Trish took his hand in hers, "Come on, let's go out for your match, and then afterwards you can tell me all about it."  
  
"You sure you want to hear everything."  
  
Trish leaned up to kiss him on the cheek. Chris had to resist the urge to throw the skank off of his face. She was truly disgusting. But he let her kiss his cheek, and her kiss lingered a little too long for his liking. Could she be any more obvious? I mean, if anyone couldn't tell what she was trying to pull, they really did have their heads up their ass.  
  
"I want to hear it all," she whisper huskily into his ear.  
  
"Good, I'm glad I have someone I can talk to."  
  
"You'll always have me Chris...always."  
  
Chris smiled and then went out onto the ramp for his entrance. Trish followed and put on her coy look for the audience. Chris was going to confide in her, and it would just give her more ammo against the now conscientious Stephanie. That stupid memory-less prude wouldn't know what hit her.  
  
After Chris's match, Trish helped Chris up the ramp, since he had gotten beaten down at the end of the match. As soon as they were backstage, Chris pulled away from Trish and stood upright. He turned to Trish.  
  
"Did you want to go to a club or something? Maybe get a drink?"  
  
"I'd love to," Trish said grinning.  
  
"Great, I'll go get showered and changed, and I'll pick you up at your dressing room."  
  
"That's great, but what about your wife?"  
  
"Heh, she can watch Regan. I'll just tell her I'm going out with the boys."  
  
"Good idea, you're so full of them you know," she winked.  
  
"We'll see later," he said, blowing her a kiss before retreating to his dressing room.  
  
He walked inside and shuddered at the thought of having to kiss Trish. How utterly disgusting. He saw Stephanie sitting on the couch, with Regan sitting on the couch next to her. She was talking to Stephanie's stomach.  
  
"Hi baby!" Regan said enthusiastically.  
  
"Tell the baby your name," Stephanie said.  
  
"I Regan!"  
  
Stephanie laughed and played with her hair, "Hey Daddy."  
  
"How are my girls doing?"  
  
"We're good, Regan wanted to talk to the baby."  
  
"Princess are you talking to Mommy's tummy?"  
  
"No Daddy, I talk to baby," Regan said, laying her head in Stephanie's lap.  
  
"Sounds like fun," Chris said coming over and kneeling in front of Stephanie, "Hey baby."  
  
"Tell name Daddy," Regan said, copying what Stephanie had said to her.  
  
"I'm Chris, but you can call me Daddy," Chris said, sending a smile in Stephanie's direction.  
  
Stephanie laughed, "So how did everything go?"  
  
"Everything went surprisingly well. We're going to a club."  
  
"Great, just don't get drunk and sleep with her," she joked  
  
"Not a chance," he said, his face scrunching up.  
  
"Good."  
  
"Daddy, pway with me tonight?"  
  
"Sweetie, when you go to the hotel, you're gonna have to go to sleep," Chris told her.  
  
"You tuck me in?"  
  
"I won't be there to tuck you in baby."  
  
"Daddy," Regan whined, "You tuck in!"  
  
"Sweetie, I promise when you wake up tomorrow, Daddy will be right there to get you."  
  
Regan pouted, "Where you go?"  
  
"Daddy has to go talk to someone, but you know what, if Mommy says it's ok, you can stay up until Daddy gets home. What do you think about that Mommy?"  
  
Stephanie shook her head playfully, "You can stay up little girl."  
  
"Yay!" Regan cried, causing her parents to laugh.  
  
"I've got to shower, I'll see you two girls later," Chris said, kissing Regan's cheek before kissing Stephanie.  
  
"Good luck," Stephanie mumbled against his lips.  
  
"I'll need it."  
  
After Chris was freshly showered and dressed, he left to go pick up Trish. He got to her dressing room and knocked on the door. Trish answered moments later, wearing a mini skirt and a halter top. Chris thought she looked slutty, but held her tongue.  
  
"Ready to go Trish?" he asked.  
  
"Of course," she said, grabbing her things.  
  
"Good....you look good."  
  
"You're so sweet," she said, leaning up to kiss his cheek...again.  
  
They went out to Chris's rental car, and he opened the door for her. He got in the car and started driving towards a club he knew in the area. He got to the club and parked, the both of them getting out. They got inside easily and got drinks. They walked over to a small table and sat down.  
  
"So tell me about the Stephanie situation."  
  
"I don't know, she's different."  
  
"And you feel?"  
  
"Like I don't know her, or want to know her."  
  
"So you're having regrets."  
  
"Many."  
  
"I'm so sorry you're going through this," Trish said in mock sincerity.  
  
"Thanks Trish, I really feel like I can open up to you."  
  
"You can," she said, putting her hand on top of his.  
  
"It's so hard you know. I don't even think I love her anymore, but she's carrying my child."  
  
"Are you sure it's yours?"  
  
Chris looked at her surprised. He didn't know she would go down this route to try and get Stephanie away from him. He'd have to tell Stephanie about this, they could possibly use this against Trish. He decided to play it up.  
  
"Actually, I don't know."  
  
"You think she could be sleeping around."  
  
"Who knows? I don't even know her."  
  
"Don't worry Chris, if you ever need me, I'll be right here, all you ever have to do is ask."  
  
"I'm glad."  
  
"And Chris, if you ever want me, you just have to call. If you need me for anything, and I mean ANYTHING, just ask, and I promise, I'll help you out."  
  
"Oh Trish, I'm sure you will." 


	10. Chapter 10

Chris winced as Trish went for his hand. Stephanie better appreciate all the shit he was going through. He turned his head and gave her a strained smile as they walked together towards Trish's hotel room. She grinned back at him coyly, too coyly for Chris's liking.  
  
They reached her door and stopped. Trish tugged his hand so that they were facing each other. He looked around, hoping this would be over soon so he could get back to Stephanie and Regan.  
  
"I had so much fun tonight," Trish said.  
  
"Good, me too," Chris lied.  
  
"I'm glad you chose to confide in me, I'll be sure to keep all of your secrets."  
  
"Thanks Trish, I'm really grateful for it."  
  
"Not a problem," she smirked, "Did you want to come in?"  
  
"I don't think I should."  
  
"Oh come on," she said, tugging on his hand, "Just for a little while."  
  
"I should get back to my room, see if I can salvage something with Stephanie."  
  
"Oh Chris, I think you need to sleep on this."  
  
"You think?"  
  
"Yeah, come on, you can spend the night here," Trish said, running her free hand up his chest seductively.  
  
"Thanks for the offer Trish, but I'm just going to pass on it tonight."  
  
"Awww, I need someone to keep me warm. And Stephanie would never have to know."  
  
Chris had to resist himself from just cursing her out. Could she be any more obvious about this? She was literally about to jump him right here in the hallway. Chris gave a short laugh and look at her.  
  
"Sorry, but I'll have to take a rain check."  
  
"Ok, some other time then," she said.  
  
Then she leaned up, expecting him to kiss her. He rolled his eyes, his lips were going to be nowhere near hers unless they were on screen. He leaned down and instead of a kiss on the lips, he kissed her on the cheek. Chris pulled away and looked at her.  
  
"Night Trish."  
  
Trish gave him a look of disappointment, "Night."  
  
Chris left quickly towards the elevator, not looking back. He got inside the elevator and rode it up to his floor. He got off and walked quick- paced to his own room. The sooner this dismal night was over, the better. He took out his key card and walked inside.  
  
Seeing most of the lights off he figured that Stephanie and Regan had fallen asleep. He silently put his things down and went into the bedroom. He saw Stephanie and Regan asleep together on one of the beds. He smiled as he watched them for a second. Trish expected him to give up this for her? The girl was a bigger dolt than he realized.  
  
He got his pajamas and walked into the bathroom to change and brush his teeth. As soon as he was done with that, he turned off the light and walked over to the bed. They had fallen asleep with the television on, so he figured they were trying to wait up for him. A check of the clock revealed that it was almost one in the morning.  
  
He carefully went over to the side of the bed where Regan was sleeping and he picked her up gently. She snuggled up to him unconsciously and he smiled down at her. He took her over to her bed and laid her down. He pulled the covers over her little body and leaned down to kiss her forehead.  
  
"Night Princess," he whispered.  
  
Regan coughed and turned on her side. Chris laughed softly before going over to his own bed. He pulled the covers over Stephanie first then got inside himself. He turned off the television before laying down. A few minutes later, Stephanie cuddled into him. Chris sighed and kissed the top of her head. Feeling him kiss her, Stephanie opened her eyes slowly.  
  
"Chris?" she whispered.  
  
"Yes baby."  
  
"When did you get back?"  
  
"A little while ago."  
  
"How was it?" she asked, a little more awake now.  
  
"It went exactly as planned."  
  
"Good, and she bought everything you told her about us?"  
  
"Absolutely."  
  
"Great," she yawned, "Did you have to kiss her?"  
  
"No, her cheek."  
  
"Even better."  
  
"Why don't you go back to sleep baby, you're tired."  
  
"Yeah," she yawned again.  
  
"Night baby."  
  
"Mmm, night," she mumbled.  
  
The next couple weeks passed by and Stephanie and Chris kept pretending they were having marital problems. Well, kept pretending around Trish, everyone else could only see the happy expectant couple with the adorable little girl. But that's the way everyone wanted them to see it.  
  
"So you two seem to be fighting more and more," Trish said, trying to be sympathetic.  
  
"Yeah, it's getting worse and I don't know, I kind of just want out."  
  
"Then you should get out," she said.  
  
Trish laughed inwardly as she thought about how things were going according to her plan. It seemed the two of them had started fighting after Stephanie had heard her phony phone conversation. God this new Stephanie was a total ditz. She seemed to believe everything everyone said. How sad.  
  
"You think so?"  
  
"Yeah, Chris, you're obviously not happy, and you deserve happiness," she said, running a hand through his hair.  
  
"But she's having my child."  
  
"So? After it's born, you can get custody of it. They'd give it to you, since Stephanie has no memory."  
  
"You really think so?"  
  
"Yes, and then you'd be free and she'd be free. You know, she's probably missing England and wanting to go to the place she calls home. Maybe you're just holding her back."  
  
"Yeah, maybe..." Chris said, trying to sound distant.  
  
"You really should think about it. I'll be there for you through the whole thing."  
  
Chris hugged her, "Trish, you're the best, thank you so much for everything."  
  
"Hey, what are friends for?"  
  
"I better get going."  
  
"Ok," Trish said, kissing his cheek, "Think about it."  
  
"I will."  
  
Chris walked out of her locker room and made a puking sound. Could she get any more disgusting? And all this divorce stuff was getting him kind of angry, it was becoming clearer and clearer what Trish's intentions were, and he didn't appreciate being manipulated like that, especially when it involved his family.  
  
He went into his dressing room, seeing Stephanie and Regan waiting for him. Since the house show was over they were free to go. Luckily this show was being held close to their home. Chris smiled at his two ladies.  
  
"You two ready to go?"  
  
"Definitely."  
  
"Good, Regan, you excited to spend the night at Grandma and Grandpa's?"  
  
"Uh huh," she said nodding.  
  
"Ok, do you have your suitcase?"  
  
"Yes Daddy."  
  
"Ok, grab my hand and we'll go take you to Grandpa."  
  
"Ok, bye Mama," Regan said, standing up on the couch to kiss Stephanie.  
  
Stephanie hugged her little girl, "Be good ok."  
  
"Kay Mama," Regan said, jumping off the couch and running over to Chris.  
  
"Have fun Reg."  
  
Chris left with Regan and her suitcase and Stephanie studied her nails as she waited for Chris to return. They were going to Stephanie's doctor's appointment and then they got the whole night to themselves. They needed it after having to deal with Trish and her antics all the time.  
  
"Come in," Stephanie responded to a knock on her door.  
  
Trish walked in, "You know, you're just tearing him apart."  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
"Chris. You're treating him like shit."  
  
"I don't think you have the right to tell me how I treat my husband."  
  
"Oh, I do, cause he tells me everything about you, and you know what Stephanie?"  
  
"No what?" Stephanie said, laughing.  
  
"He's not happy. You don't make him happy."  
  
"And you do?"  
  
"I can....and I will," she said walking out.  
  
"Oh my God," Stephanie muttered to herself. The girl was crazy.  
  
Minutes later, Chris came back into the locker room and Stephanie stood up to greet him. He came over and kissed her and she wrapped her arms around his waist, then hugging him to her. He pulled away and looked at her, smiling.  
  
"You will not believe who was just in here?"  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Trish, giving me a warning that she was going to steal you from me because I didn't make you happy."  
  
Chris laughed loudly, "Not make me happy, that's a laugh and a half."  
  
"I know, she's delusional."  
  
"Uh huh...now what do you say we go see what this baby looks like?" Chris asked, putting his hand on her now more pronounced middle.  
  
"Lets."  
  
They got their things and went to Chris's car that they had driven. They drove to the doctor's chatting about things they needed to buy for the baby's room, which they had yet to prepare. They reached the office and got out together before heading inside.  
  
Some time later and Stephanie was lying on the examination table, the ultrasound taking place. The doctor was pointing out their baby and Stephanie laughed as Chris got that giddy look on his face. He loved children so much and she knew he was excited for this baby.  
  
Chris looked down at Stephanie, smiling like a little kid. To be honest, he was probably more excited for this child then he had been for Regan. But that was mainly because, after Stephanie had died he never expected to have more kids, and now he was, with the only woman he had ever loved.  
  
"So that's our baby," Stephanie said, later on as they were lying on the loveseat in the living room.  
  
"Yep."  
  
"I can tell he'll be good-looking."  
  
"Or she'll be gorgeous."  
  
"Yeah, do you want a boy?"  
  
"Either way, I don't care."  
  
"Don't lie, you want a boy," Stephanie said.  
  
"I really don't care, but I wouldn't be adverse to a boy, or another little Regan."  
  
"Me neither. This time I get to experience everything, and I'm gonna make sure I'm there for everything."  
  
"I'm glad you'll be there for everything."  
  
"Trish would rather I not be there," Stephanie said, angrily.  
  
"Whatever, don't think about her."  
  
"It's hard not to."  
  
"Don't worry ok, she'll get what's coming to her, because karma's a bitch baby, and she's going to get a huge dose of it." 


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Thank you to all those who have reviewed, it really helps me try to make this story better if you leave a review for me. :)  
  
~  
  
"You know what, you can just leave it's fine!"  
  
"You want me out of your life!"  
  
"You heard me you bitch, didn't you!"  
  
"Yes, I heard you, you're fucking yelling!"  
  
Trish stood outside their door, listening to them argue. She smirked to herself, she loved to hear this kind of stuff. She couldn't believe how quickly Chris and Stephanie's marriage was deteriorating. They were never happy anymore.  
  
"Trish, what are you doing?" a voice said behind her.  
  
She turned around quickly and saw Kurt standing a few feet away, "Nothing Kurt."  
  
"Are you listening at that door?"  
  
"I'm waiting for Chris so we can go out for our intergender match."  
  
"You don't have to wait right outside the door do you?"  
  
"No, I was just about to knock," Trish said, trying to cover up.  
  
"You sure?" Kurt said, coming closer.  
  
"I hate you!" Stephanie's voice came from inside.  
  
Kurt walked over until he was standing next to Trish, "What's going on in there?"  
  
"They're fighting," she told him, suppressing her smile.  
  
"Fighting? But Chris and Steph don't fight."  
  
"Well, they've been fighting a lot lately."  
  
"They have?" Kurt asked concerned about the two of them.  
  
"Yeah, devastating isn't it?" Trish said, trying not to laugh.  
  
"Yeah," Kurt said, not recognizing her tone.  
  
The two of them turned to the door, listening to the people on the other side. While Kurt was concerned for his friends, Trish was delighting in every harsh word that was spoken.  
  
"Why don't you just shut the fuck up!?!" Chris yelled.  
  
"Don't you even fucking dare say that to me! Who do you think you are?"  
  
"I'm your husband, though I don't even know why?"  
  
"Fine, you want to leave, then divorce me, I dare you!"  
  
"Maybe I should!"  
  
"Oh, then you can look like an asshole, divorcing your poor, pregnant wife, who has amnesia."  
  
"You'd just love to look like the victim wouldn't you!?" Chris shouted.  
  
"Whatever Chris."  
  
"Fine, I'm outta here, I've got a match with Trish, someone who I can actually stand!"  
  
Trish smiled at the comment, seemed this time she was breaking through. Chris would surely be receptive to her advances now. The two people on the outside of the door quickly rushed away from the door as they heard footsteps getting closer. Chris walked out a second later, an angry look on his face.  
  
Chris was surprised to see Kurt there, he hadn't expected anyone but Trish to hear. He knew Trish would listen in especially since they had a match coming up next, but he didn't expect Kurt there as well. Usually he and Stephanie would get an out of the way dressing room so as not to arise suspicion that their marriage was actually in trouble.  
  
Chris gave Kurt a look, then turned to Trish, "You ready babe?"  
  
Trish smiled at his affectionate name, "Always."  
  
They walked down the hallway together and Kurt watched them go. He couldn't believe what was going on. Chris and Stephanie hardly really fought with each other. Sure they did on-screen, but never in real life. And it seemed like there was something between Chris and Trish, but surely that wasn't right. It just couldn't. He turned to the door and knocked.  
  
"Come in," Stephanie's voice called out.  
  
Kurt walked in and saw her looking contentedly at a baby furniture magazine, "Hey Steph."  
  
She looked up, "Oh hey Kurt, what's up?"  
  
"Steph, is everything ok?"  
  
"Yeah, everything's fine," she said, smiling at him, "I'm just looking at baby furniture."  
  
Kurt studied her, "Are you sure? You can tell me if there was? I used to be your very best friend you know?"  
  
"I know, I'm fine."  
  
Kurt came over and sat down on the couch next to her, "I don't think you are."  
  
"Kurt, what's the matter?"  
  
"I heard you and Chris fighting a little while ago," Kurt said quietly.  
  
"Oh."  
  
"Yeah, what's going on Stephanie? Are you and Chris having problems?"  
  
"No, we're fine."  
  
Stephanie couldn't believe Kurt had heard them. They had tried so hard not to bring anyone else into their little plot, it was just easier that way. And besides, no one but Chris even knew she had her memory back.  
  
"Stephanie, you don't have to lie to me. I heard you and Chris yelling about getting a divorce."  
  
"Kurt, it was nothing really, just forget about it," Stephanie said, desperately trying to end this conversation.  
  
"Steph, please, you can tell me if something's wrong."  
  
Stephanie sighed. She might as well tell Kurt the truth. It wasn't like he'd use it against her and she knew she could trust him. Besides, they could use him in their little plan, especially to get Regan away so she wouldn't hear any fighting and get worried about her parents.  
  
"Kurt, do you remember when we had to kiss?"  
  
"Yeah, why do you ask? Did you see tapes?"  
  
"No, but remember how your character was trying to seduce my character away from Triple H?"  
  
"Yeah, that was a great storyline. Do you want me to tell you about it?"  
  
"Trish is trying to do that but in real life," she explained.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"She's trying to get Chris away from me."  
  
"But why would she do that?"  
  
"She wants the McMahon money and she figures if she can get me out of the picture, then she can get her hands on the cash and be set for life."  
  
Kurt was a little taken aback, "Well, that's not cool. Oh, and with you and Chris having problems, she's probably ready to pounce."  
  
"Kurt, Chris and I aren't having problems."  
  
"You're not?"  
  
"No, we're just playing with Trish because we know her agenda."  
  
"Oh, ok," Kurt said, finally getting it, "Wow, I didn't even know you were into plans anymore, I guess a little bit of the old Steph is still in you."  
  
"I suppose so...but I mean, we all have a little wild side in us. I mean, you like to dance like an idiot when you're drunk."  
  
"Hey, I do not! Did Chris tell you that?"  
  
"Hmm....and you also like to play the Rocky theme when you walk up your stairs."  
  
Kurt's eyes got as big as saucers and looked at her in awe. She looked at him with a coy smirk on her face. Kurt grinned widely and threw his arms around her, giving her a tight hug.  
  
"Oh my God, you're back!"  
  
"Took you long enough to figure out," she told him.  
  
He pulled away and looked at her, "When did it come back?"  
  
"The day Chris and I renewed our vows."  
  
"And you haven't told anyone because...."  
  
"Because we wanted to keep it ours for a while, you understand don't you?"  
  
"Of course I understand. But I'm so happy to have you back," he grinned.  
  
"I know," she said, "Of course Trish is none too happy."  
  
"I can only imagine. So what are you guys doing to her?"  
  
"Well, we're pretending to be on the outs with each other, and she keeps coming on to Chris and he keeps telling her bogus shit about the two of us. And then I'm going to pretend to leave him and when she finally tries to make her move, we're going to expose her for the money grubber that she is. And then we'll fire her ass," Stephanie explained, grinning at the last part.  
  
"Sounds good...but I have an even better idea," Kurt said.  
  
"What?" Stephanie asked anxiously, she loved hearing plans.  
  
"How about you and I pretend to have a little something on the side."  
  
Stephanie started laughing. This was getting better and better. If Trish thought that Stephanie and Kurt has something going on, then she would immediately tell Chris and then it would further the plan quickly and she and Chris wouldn't have Trish being a pain in their side.  
  
"You may be onto something Kurt, I'm totally liking that idea."  
  
"You are? Really?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm going to bring it up to Chris later, I'm sure he'll go for it."  
  
"Great! Well, I have a promo to shoot after Chris's match, but let me know what he says about it."  
  
"I will."  
  
Kurt hugged her again, "I'm just glad you're back."  
  
"Thanks Kurt."  
  
"Bye Steph."  
  
"Bye."  
  
Stephanie sat there, watching her husband wrestling on the screen. She rested both of her hands on the bulge of her stomach. She smiled as she thought about how things would turn out and how they were getting a second chance, how she was getting a second chance. Chris's match ended and she waited backstage for him to come back. He was there within ten minutes.  
  
"Hey you," he said, after he had closed and locked the door.  
  
"Hey."  
  
"How did the match look?"  
  
"Looked good, you did well."  
  
"Great, I wonder what Regan thought?"  
  
"I don't know, you want to call your parent's and ask her?" Stephanie laughed.  
  
"No, I just miss my little girl."  
  
"She's only with them for a few days. Your parents love to see her every once in a while you know?"  
  
"I know, but I still miss her. So what did you do while was gone?"  
  
"Well, looked at baby furniture, we're going to have to start buying stuff."  
  
"Sounds good to me."  
  
"And I talked to Kurt."  
  
"Oh yeah, he heard us fake arguing, I hope he doesn't get the wrong idea and--"  
  
"I told him the truth," Stephanie interrupted.  
  
"You did?"  
  
"Yeah and he had a great idea."  
  
"What?"  
  
"He said that me and him should pretend to have something going on the side and then that would give you a way out and we could get rid of Trish sooner."  
  
"How far would you go in this little roleplay?"  
  
"Chris," she said, rolling her eyes, "We're not going to like actually be together."  
  
"I know, I just don't know if I like you kissing Kurt."  
  
"He's my best friend, nothing more, and if you've forgotten, I've kissed him before."  
  
"Ok, I guess, just don't get into them."  
  
"I won't."  
  
"So I guess we just got a little sneakier."  
  
"Oh, I'd say we have. Trish Stratus, watch out." 


	12. Chapter 12

"So how is this going to go down?"  
  
"Come on Kurt, it's not that difficult is it?"  
  
"Well, I don't know, I've never had to have a plan like this."  
  
"All you have to do is pretend like you're with me."  
  
"I know that, but well, it's not as easy as it looks."  
  
"Why?" Stephanie asked.  
  
"Well, first of all, you're my best friend's wife."  
  
"Yeah, but you have your best friend's permission to do this."  
  
"Fine, and second of all, Chris, do you have to watch us?"  
  
"Geez, sorry, can't even stay in my own dressing room," Chris said, crossing his arms as he leaned against the wall.  
  
Chris watched as Kurt and Stephanie practiced how they were going to act in front of Trish. They wanted it to look as realistic as possible, without getting too touchy-feely, they didn't want to take this too seriously. Chris was here, trying to see if it did in fact look realistic enough.  
  
It was a lot easier when you had someone eon your side, helping you out. Chris and Stephanie both figured that with Kurt on their side now, they could end this plan sooner and focus on more important things. Their impending baby at the forefront.  
  
"Ok, so this is what we're doing...Kurt and I will be down one of the hallways and I'll be leaning against the wall, and Kurt you'll be leaning in front of me really close."  
  
"And talking close to your ear right?" Kurt asked.  
  
"Right. Then you lean in like you're going to kiss me, and that's when you," Stephanie said, turning to Chris, "Starts to walk in our direction and if everything goes according to plan, Trish will whisk him away and tell him all about our indiscretion."  
  
"Yeah, and then I'll let Trish talk to me about it and I'll pretend to feel devastated and we'll just go from there," Chris said.  
  
"Great, sounds like a plan," Stephanie said, "I kind of feel like we should all put our hands in and do that break thing that they do during sports games."  
  
Chris laughed, "Whatever baby."  
  
"It was just a thought," she pouted.  
  
Chris went over to her and wrapped his arms around her from behind. He settled his hands on her stomach, where she was definitely starting to show. He rubbed her stomach, causing her to smile. Kurt smiled goofily as he watched the two of them.  
  
"You two are so sweet," Kurt said.  
  
"We know," they answered in unison.  
  
"Question though guys."  
  
"Shoot," Chris said.  
  
"When do you plan to end this?"  
  
"Well, before I have to stop traveling that's for sure," Stephanie said, "Because no way am I leaving her alone with Chris."  
  
"Hey, who said I wanted to be alone with her," Chris protested.  
  
"That's not what I meant sweetie, I'm just saying, I don't want her to take advantage of the situation of me leaving."  
  
"So that would be how long?" Kurt asked again.  
  
"Well, I'm in my 4th month, so about two more months then. Then I'll stop traveling and Regan and I will stay at home while Chris travels," Stephanie explained.  
  
"Wow, that's going to be so weird," Kurt commented.  
  
"What is?" Stephanie asked.  
  
"No Regan," Kurt answered.  
  
"How is that weird?" she asked.  
  
"Because Regan hasn't missed more than a week of shows since she was six months old," Chris explained.  
  
"You mean she's been traveling every week for the past two and a half years?" she asked incredulously.  
  
"Well yeah baby, I mean, I didn't have anyone to help me take care of her, and she was my little girl I didn't want to leave her behind, she was all I had, so she was always with me."  
  
"So she doesn't even know what it's like to have a permanent home?"  
  
"Well of course she does, we always went home during my off days," Chris said.  
  
"But sweetie, she needs to stay at a home for more than two or three days a week."  
  
"Well, now she can, but I wasn't about to leave my little girl somewhere with people she barely knew."  
  
"I understand, I'm sorry, just the hormones talking," she apologized.  
  
"Hey, no need to apologize, it's cool."  
  
"Ok, so Chris, when is this little on-screen wedding with Trish?"  
  
"Oh, a month and a half, right Steph?"  
  
"Yeah, hopefully we'll get her out of here before then, but if we don't, I'll love thinking of a way to sabotage it."  
  
Chris looked at his watch, "Ok, I think it's time to get ready."  
  
"Ok, see you in a bit," Stephanie said, turning her head to get a kiss from Chris.  
  
Chris pulled away from her and walked out of the door. He had to get Trish to walk down a certain hallway so she could spy on Kurt and Stephanie as they pretended to flirt or something. He felt like some sort of double agent. It was pretty cool when he thought about it.  
  
He got to Trish's dressing room and knocked on the door. He hoped that Kurt and Stephanie were set in their positions. They had to be precise about this. If anything was off, then this wouldn't work.  
  
"Oh Chris, you ready to go out there for our promo?"  
  
"Yeah, I think we had to film a backstage one to, like walking to the ring," he explained.  
  
"Oh, that's fine."  
  
"Yeah, some production assistant said to find some hallway and tell us which we want to use."  
  
"Sounds fun," Trish said sarcastically, putting her hand in Chris's.  
  
"Yeah, how bout we split up and find a hallway."  
  
"Sounds good," she smiled.  
  
"Great," Chris said, knowing the plan was working, "You go down that way, and I'll go down this way."  
  
"Fine," she said.  
  
Chris walked one way, looking over his shoulder, watching Trish go the other way. He waited a while before turning the corner and waiting for the time that he wanted to go and see her.  
  
Trish walked down the hallway, seeing which one had the best light to make her look good. She heard voices that sounded like Stephanie and went towards it. She peered around the corner and saw Stephanie and Kurt standing awfully close to one another.  
  
"Yeah Kurt, he has some sort of promo with Trish, so we'll be alone," Stephanie whispered loud enough for Trish to hear, having seen Trish out of the side of her eye.  
  
She looked at Kurt and winked at him, giving him the signal that Trish was there. Kurt nodded slightly, letting her know that he knew she was there. Trish quickly turned the corner, and set out to listen to them.  
  
"Good, I've been wanting to see you all day."  
  
"Oh me too Kurt, me too."  
  
"You know, I think I like you better without your memory, that way I can wipe away any memory you had of Chris," Kurt said, trying not to laugh.  
  
"You're so funny Kurt," Stephanie giggled coyly, not looking in Kurt's eyes, knowing if she did, she would start cracking up.  
  
"So you gonna sneak to my hotel room tonight?" Kurt asked.  
  
"If I can, sometimes Chris stays up late."  
  
"Well try, I've been wanting you all day."  
  
"Have you?"  
  
"Yeah, I just keep imagining you, nothing on but a smile as I kiss down your..."  
  
Trish's eyes widened as she listened to the two of them. Kurt and Stephanie were having an affair. She wanted to drop down to her knees and praise the powers that be. Chris would never stand for this, not in a million years.  
  
"Trish, did you find a place?" Chris's voice asked from behind her.  
  
Trish turned around quickly, "No, let's just use this one."  
  
"What's the matter?" he asked, feigning concern.  
  
"Nothing, let's go," Trish said, not wanting Chris to witness Kurt and Stephanie. She'd have to break the news gently.  
  
Chris and Trish walked out and cut their promo in the ring, everything going off without a hitch. Trish contemplated how to tell him, maybe he wouldn't' believe her. But he had been confiding in her that he thought Stephanie was having an affair. This would just cement it.  
  
Later on, Chris and Trish were sitting in her dressing room and she was leaning her head on his shoulder, holding her hand. Chris felt incredibly dirty. Trish was just a complete skank and he didn't even want to know how many guys she had slept with.  
  
"So you wanted to tell me something?" Chris asked.  
  
"Chris, I know this is going to come as a shock to you, but I have to tell you this for your won good."  
  
"Ok."  
  
"Stephanie and Kurt are having an affair," she said, trying to be sympathetic when she really wasn't.  
  
Chris jumped up from his seat on the couch and looked at her, mouth open. He ran his hands through his hair, then started pacing back and forth. He didn't want to overact, but well, he wanted to make it believable.  
  
"You're lying!"  
  
"No Chris, I'm not. I saw them with my own eyes."  
  
"How could she?" Chris asked sadly.  
  
"I know it's hard Chris, I know it is, but you have to be strong."  
  
"I can't believe how my life is falling apart, I don't have anyone," Chris cried out. This was so much fun.  
  
"Chris, you have me, you'll always have me."  
  
"Really?" he asked, looking up at her.  
  
"Yes, and you can have me any way you want," Trish said seductively.  
  
"Wh-what do you mean?" Chris asked nervously.  
  
Trish walked up to him and ran her hands up his bare chest. Chris's eyes widened as he realized what she meant. She leaned in to kiss him, but Chris pulled away at the last moment. He had to bail, and fast.  
  
"Trish, I need time to think about this."  
  
"Come on Chris, she's cheating on you, there's nothing that you have to worry about," she said, pulling closer to him.  
  
"I just can't, bye," he said, making a quick escape.  
  
He went to his dressing room, knowing that Kurt had given Stephanie and Regan a ride back to the hotel. He saw that she had taken his things and went straight to his car, not looking back in case Trish had followed him. He went straight to his hotel and up to his room, walking inside. Stephanie and Regan were sitting watching television.  
  
"Hey girls," Chris said.  
  
Stephanie looked up, "Hey baby, everything go alright?"  
  
"Yeah, perfectly, um, she tried to come on to me," he said.  
  
"And you did what?"  
  
"Made a quick escape, but made it look like I had to think about it, not that I was turning her down," he said, coming to sit with his girls on the couch.  
  
"Good, and she bought everything."  
  
"Hook, line and sinker."  
  
"Great," Stephanie grinned.  
  
"Daddy, where were you?" Regan asked, looking up at him.  
  
"Daddy had to talk to someone Princess."  
  
"You never play with no more," she pouted.  
  
Chris looked at Stephanie and she looked at him sadly. He realized right then how much this plan was overtaking his life. And Regan was in fact suffering from it even if he had tried to protect her.  
  
"I'm sorry little girl, do you want to play now?"  
  
"Kay," she said brightly, getting off the couch and sitting with her toys, "Play Daddy?"  
  
"Of course, let Daddy just talk to Mommy for a second" he said.  
  
"Ok Daddy," Regan said, playing with some action figures.  
  
Chris scooted closer to Steph, "Baby?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"We need to bring Trish down, and we need to bring her down quick. I'm not letting my little girl suffer because I'm trying to get someone fired."  
  
"What are you saying Chris?"  
  
"It's time we brought out the big guns."  
  
"What are the big guns?"  
  
"We have to split up."  
  
"Wait, I thought you didn't want to do that?" Stephanie said.  
  
"Well, I don't want my little girl sad because her Daddy isn't here to play with her."  
  
"So we'll pretend to split up?"  
  
"It's the only way." 


	13. Chapter 13

Chris kneeled in front of Regan as she was about to board the plane. She threw her little arms around his neck and hugged him fiercely. He hugged her back and closed his eyes. Then he pulled away and let Stephanie hug the little girl.  
  
"Now I want you to be good for Grams and Gramps ok?" Chris said to the little girl.  
  
"I will," Regan said, biting her lip a little, "Daddy?"  
  
"Yes Princess?"  
  
"Do I have go to Gams?" she asked.  
  
Chris sighed as he looked at her. He didn't want to have to send her to his parent's, but he didn't want her caught in the crossfire of what he, Stephanie, and Kurt were about to do. He had told Stephanie when this whole thing had started that Regan had to remain unaffected, and that's the way it had to be.  
  
Regan had already been through too much in her short life. She'd lost a mother when she was only an infant, been raised on the road, never knowing what it was like to have a permanent residence, and then gained a mother back. The last thing he wanted to do was to put her through a fake divorce between her parents.  
  
"Princess don't you want to visit them?"  
  
"I wanna stay wif you and Mama," she told him.  
  
"It's only for a little while, I promise."  
  
"Sweetie," Stephanie interjected, "When you come back, I promise that you, me, and Daddy will go somewhere together ok?"  
  
"Where?" she asked, suddenly curious.  
  
"Hmm....anywhere you choose?"  
  
"Disneywand," she said happily.  
  
"Ok, then Disneyland it is," Stephanie said, kissing her forehead.  
  
"Are you ready?" the flight attendant for the flight asked, walking up to them.  
  
Chris and Stephanie both kissed Regan one more time before standing up and nodding. The flight attendant took Regan's hand and they started walking down the jet-way to the plane. Regan looked back and waved at them and they waved back at her until she disappeared around the corner. Chris sighed and wrapped his arm around Stephanie's waist.  
  
"You ok?" Stephanie asked.  
  
"I guess."  
  
"Sweetie, we don't have to go through with this plan."  
  
"No, I want to, we have to."  
  
"But I know how you feel about it and I don't want to do anything that you're not in agreement with."  
  
"No, Steph, I'm fine with it," he said, turning to her, "Do what you gotta do and all that."  
  
"I just don't want to push you into anything."  
  
"You're not," he said, kissing her cheek.  
  
They watched as Regan's plane pulled out and made its way down to the runway and take off. Then they turned and walked together out of the airport. They had a show to get ready for and they knew that what was going to come after the show was what was most important. They got to their car and rode in silence to the arena, both thinking of what was going to go down.  
  
Stephanie looked out the window, watching the passing scenery. She felt Chris's hand sneak its way into hers and intertwine fingers with her. She gave his hand a squeeze and then kissed it softly before putting it back in her lap, holding the back of Chris's palm against her swollen belly.  
  
"Is Kurt clear on what we're doing?" Chris asked, breaking the silence.  
  
"Yeah, I called him and told him about what we were planning on doing."  
  
"And he's cool with it?"  
  
"He said if we were cool with it then he was cool with it," she said, turning to look at Chris.  
  
"Ok great."  
  
"Chris?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"You don't think that something will happen to make us really break up do you?" she asked.  
  
"Stephy baby, I don't think that anything could tear us apart ever," he answered honestly.  
  
"You actually believe that?"  
  
"Steph, I love you more than anything in my life, with the exception of maybe Regan and this little one," he said, rubbing her stomach with the back of his hand, "But other than them, you are it for me. I didn't spend the past two years mourning your death only to leave you when you came back."  
  
Stephanie smiled and rolled her eyes, "Then I guess we have no choice but to go through with this."  
  
"Don't worry, it'll all be over soon, and then we can go to Disneyland," Chris said, eyeing Stephanie.  
  
"She looked so sad I had to say something," Stephanie countered.  
  
"It's ok, we'll go on a vacation before you have to stay at home."  
  
"It'll be fun."  
  
They rode the rest of the way in a comfortable quiet. They finally arrived at the arena and Stephanie let go of Chris's hand. They got out of the car and Chris took Stephanie's things and carried them inside. They knew what was going to have to happen after the show and they were both nervous.  
  
They walked into Chris's locker room and Stephanie sat down on the couch, deep in thought. She rubbed her stomach comfortingly, just thinking about what was going to happen over this next weekend. She and Jericho were going balls out on this one and it could make or break them.  
  
She felt another hand join hers on her stomach and she smiled softly up at Chris. He looked down at her, an open look of love on his face. She caught him looking at her like that every once in a while. She knew that sometimes he was still in awe that she could be here, with him again. She'd never truly know what it was like for him in those two years she was gone, but when she saw him looking at her like this, she knew that he must've had it hard.  
  
"Chris," she whispered.  
  
"Yeah baby," he said, resting his palm on her stomach.  
  
"Please tell me how you found out I died," she pleaded.  
  
She just had to know this. When she had had amnesia and was living in England, she used to picture that she had a family back home, waiting for her. She would picture these imaginary person's reactions to her disappearance and sometimes she'd wake up in a cold sweat as she pictured someone being heartbroken at her leaving.  
  
Chris looked down a moment, and Stephanie could see his lip quiver slightly. She knew this was hard on him, and she understood that, but a part of her just desperately wanted to know how he had reacted. She loved him so much and she knew she'd be devastated if he died, and the sick part of her wanted to know his reaction.  
  
"I was sitting on the couch," Chris said, looking up, his eyes glassy from tears, "Regan was taking her nap, and I was watching television. You hadn't called yet and I was wondering why you hadn't, and hoping you'd call soon because I missed you and wanted to talk to you before you were too tired to talk. Then the phone rang and I got up thinking it was you."  
  
Chris looked past Stephanie and she could see him looking into the past. A lone tear escaped his eye and trickled slowly down his cheek until Stephanie's hand came up to intercept its trajectory. She wiped it away and looked into his eyes.  
  
"I'm right here Chris," she whispered.  
  
He continued, looking into her eyes, "It was your father and he said he had bad news. I knew it was about you and he said that your plane had crashed and there were no survivors. I dropped the phone and stood there, just thinking. Then I collapsed in tears and just cried for what seemed like hours. I didn't want to believe it, I didn't want to think it. Finally, Regan started to cry and I picked myself up and went and got her. I held her the rest of the night because I was so afraid that I would lose her too. I didn't have anything to live for anymore except her."  
  
Stephanie started crying and looked into his azure blue eyes. His tears spilled over and he made no attempt to hide his tears. Everyone had seen him cry at Stephanie's funeral so he had no shame crying. She threw her arms around him and he pulled her to her. They stayed locked together for a few moments before Stephanie wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and pulled away, sending him a weak smile.  
  
"Thank you for telling me," she said.  
  
"You wanted to know," he shrugged, wiping his eyes so it looked like he wasn't crying.  
  
"I just needed to know. I know you love me Chris Jericho."  
  
"Stephy, you should know by now that I've loved you for the longest time."  
  
"I do know. Trust me. You're willing to put up with this idiotic plan just to be with me."  
  
"I'm already with you, but I will do anything to make sure that you, Regan, and the baby are safe and happy."  
  
"Then I guess the best thing to do is go forward with this."  
  
"Yeah," he sighed, "So when is Kurt getting here?"  
  
"Did I hear my name?" Kurt said, walking in.  
  
"Big ears," Jericho joked.  
  
"Very funny Chris, can we just get down to business," Kurt said, sitting down in one of the leather chairs.  
  
"Why so serious?"  
  
"Because if this woman thinks that she can replace my friend Stephanie, she's got another thing coming to her," Kurt said somberly.  
  
"You're so sweet Kurt," Stephanie said, blushing a little.  
  
"I know," Kurt winked at her.  
  
"Ok you two, save the flirting for when Trish is around and not when Stephanie's husband is around," Chris said, rolling his eyes a little.  
  
"Jealous?" Kurt said.  
  
"Of you Kurt? Not a chance."  
  
"Ok you two, they'll be no fighting over me," Stephanie said, shaking her head, "Let's get this plan squared away."  
  
"Ok, so after the show is over, what's going to happen?" Kurt asked.  
  
"I'm going to come back here and I'm going to find you two, in some sort of embrace or something," Chris told him, "Stephanie scheduled me in the last match and you're in the middle of the show Kurt so it works out."  
  
"Ok, sounds good, now will Trish be with you?" Kurt asked.  
  
"Yeah, since she accompanies me to the ring, she'll be with me. So I'll open the door, and find you guys and then I'll come in and shut the door so no one else can hear."  
  
"I made sure we got a soundproof room," Stephanie interrupted.  
  
"So we'll argue and mock fight," Chris said, "Now Stephanie, you stay as far away from us as possible."  
  
"I know Chris, because you don't want to hit the baby," she said.  
  
"Yeah. So then I'll say this isn't worth it, Steph isn't worth it, and that it's over between us and grab my stuff."  
  
"And Trish will just be loving this whole thing," Stephanie said, "So she'll obviously offer to put up Chris."  
  
"Yeah, so then we'll go out and we'll get drunk, or at least Trish will. I'll bring her back to her room and put her to bed. Then I'll take a room key, come back to my hotel room with Steph, then the next morning, sneak back into her room and then we pretend like we slept together so she'll think we're kind of together."  
  
"And then when she gets her little wedding, we drop the bombshell on her that she and Chris are nothing and that she's fired," Stephanie said, smiling cruelly.  
  
Kurt just sat there dumbfounded. Now, he knew Chris and Stephanie were intelligent people. He also knew they were good people. But dear God, he didn't realize they were two of the most conniving masterminds ever to grace the earth. He just looked at them.  
  
"Wow," he finally said, "That is one hell of a plan."  
  
"Yeah, it is," Chris said, laughing, "Thanks in part to the woman to my right."  
  
"Couldn't have done it without you baby," she said, kissing Chris's cheek.  
  
"Let's just hope it all goes according to plan." 


	14. Chapter 14

"That was a great match Chris!" Trish said enthusiastically as she and Chris walked backstage.  
  
Chris tried to catch his breath, "Yeah, thanks."  
  
"I'm so glad I'm partnered with you," Trish said, grabbing Chris's hand.  
  
Chris played along with Trish and let her hold his hand. Her hands were clammy and cold, reminded him of a snake, cold-blooded. And as far as Chris was concerned that was what she was. Trish didn't have a heart if she tried to tear a family apart. He knew that Stephanie and Kurt were already in his dressing room preparing for the big fight scene.  
  
"Trish," Chris said, slowing her down to a stop.  
  
"Yes, Chris," she said, smiling sweetly at him.  
  
"I'm going to try to reconcile with Stephanie," he told her.  
  
Trish's lip curled up into almost a snarl or something. This was the last thing she needed to hear. She was making such progress with Chris, and now it looked as if everything was going to be going down the drain. She couldn't let this happen. She had to make Chris see what a wench he was married to.  
  
"Chris, I don't think that's such a good idea," she said, mock concerned.  
  
"But Trish, I need to."  
  
"You don't NEED to do anything. You're your own person. If you don't want to be with her, then don't be with her, it's as simple as that."  
  
"But we have a daughter together, we have a baby on the way. I'd seem like an asshole if I just left her."  
  
"Chris, don't do this for the kids. They'll understand in the long run, trust me," she said softly, caressing his hand with her thumb, hoping that it would get his mind on her and off his wife and reconciliation.  
  
"Trish, I know that you're trying to be a good friend, but I'm getting back with Stephanie. I think it's what's best."  
  
He started to walk away, knowing that Trish would follow him, and try to talk him out of getting back together with Stephanie, despite them already being together. He was on his way to his dressing room, where he knew that Kurt and Stephanie were already together. The signal to let him know that they had arrived was turning the knob twice before opening the door. He got there and Trish put her hand on his shoulder.  
  
"Chris, think about this rationally," Trish pleaded, "You can't be with someone you don't love."  
  
"But I really feel like this is the only solution to the problem."  
  
"But it's not!"  
  
Chris turned the doorknob twice, "I'm sorry, but it's what I'm going to do."  
  
Inside the room, Kurt and Stephanie were anxiously awaiting the signal that would tell them that Chris and Trish were there and to set the plan into action. They sat together on the couch as they saw the knob turn. They took a deep breath and Stephanie closed her eyes and waited to feel Kurt's lips on hers. Seconds later there they were and she kissed him back as best she could. She was just acting, that's all.  
  
Chris opened the door and looked straight at the couch. His first instinct was to laugh because he could see Stephanie cringing as Kurt kissed her. He managed to stifle his laugh and then he gasped in shock. Trish looked over his shoulder to see Kurt and Stephanie making out on the couch.  
  
"What the fuck is going on here?" Chris yelled, going into the room more, Trish at his heels.  
  
Kurt and Stephanie broke apart, much to both of their relief. Kissing each other was weird to say the least, they hadn't done it in so long. They looked up guiltily and Stephanie moved away from Kurt trying to show that she was trying to look innocent.  
  
"I asked what the fuck was going on?" Chris said loudly, slamming the door shut behind him so no one would hear and think there was an actual fight going on.  
  
"N-nothing Chris," Stephanie said uneasily.  
  
"You were fucking kissing him!"  
  
"I can explain really," she said nervously, playing her part to a tee.  
  
"Who the fuck do you think you are Angle!" Chris yelled.  
  
"I couldn't help it if you couldn't please her," Kurt said snidely.  
  
"You stupid fucker!" Chris yelled.  
  
Chris yanked Kurt off the couch and threw him to the ground, "I'm going to kick your ass Angle!"  
  
Trish and Stephanie watched as Chris picked Kurt up by the collar of his shirt and threw him up against the wall. Chris threw a punch at Kurt hitting the side of his face. Kurt pushed Chris off of him and punched him in the stomach. They both fell to the floor, still hitting each other.  
  
Stephanie was impressed that they were able to make the fight look so real. She got up off the couch and walked to the corner of the room like Chris had told her. He didn't want any errant punches hitting her and possibly endangering her and the baby.  
  
Trish was still in disbelief over what she saw. Stephanie and Kurt...together!?! She'd never have believed it if she hadn't seen it with her own eyes. She guessed that Stephanie really couldn't remember how good a friend she had been with Kurt and now she was attracted to him. Too bad for her, but great for Trish. Trish walked over to Stephanie.  
  
"You stupid bitch!" Trish yelled.  
  
"What are you talking about?" Stephanie said, looking down at Trish.  
  
"You gave up a great guy. You fucking broke his heart, you cruel wench!"  
  
"Shut up! You don't know me!" Stephanie yelled at her.  
  
"Oh I know. You think you can swoop back in here on your high horse and pretend to be someone you're not. And then you go and break the heart of the guy who's been missing you for two years. I can't believe you."  
  
"You don't know what it's like to not remember so don't give me your holier than thou bullshit."  
  
"No, the only bullshit around here is you and your pretending to care about Chris," Trish said, shaking her head.  
  
"Don't you ever fucking tell me what's right and wrong bitch," Stephanie said, fed up with Trish Stratus.  
  
Trish pulled her hand back and gave Stephanie one hell of a slap. Stephanie wasn't expecting it and fell back a few steps. She instinctively held her cheek and could feel the sting of the slap. Stephanie was about to retaliate when Trish slammed her up against the wall.  
  
Chris and Kurt heard Stephanie being shoved against the wall and stopped mock fighting for a moment. They looked up and saw Trish pinning Stephanie to the wall by holding her shoulders. Stephanie grimaced with pain as she was smacked against the cold concrete of the wall.  
  
"Trish, what are you doing!?!" Chris said, getting up.  
  
"Giving her a taste of her own medicine," Trish said with gritted teeth.  
  
"Chris," Stephanie said weakly, her back aching.  
  
Chris looked at her in fright. Trish could be harming their baby and he couldn't stand for that. He ran over to where they were and grabbed Trish by the waist, trying to pry her off of Stephanie. She wouldn't let go and he had to use physical force to get her off.  
  
"Trish, she's not worth it," he told her.  
  
"The bitch was cheating on you," Trish said, trying to get out of Chris's strong grasp.  
  
"Yeah, but you can't hurt her."  
  
"But I want to," Trish said, breaking free from Chris's hold and charging at Stephanie.  
  
Kurt, who had gotten up by this time, ran at them. He intercepted Trish before she could touch Stephanie again. He tackled her to the ground and pinned her. Chris looked surprised at Kurt's quick reflexes.  
  
"Don't you dare touch her," Kurt growled, sneering down at Trish.  
  
"Chris, help me," Trish said, trying to squirm her way out from under Kurt.  
  
"Kurt, get off her," Chris said, pulling the other man off, intending to go through with the plan.  
  
Kurt got off her reluctantly, "Don't you dare touch Stephanie again."  
  
"Fine," Trish said, dusting herself off, "Let's go Chris, we don't need to be around these people any longer."  
  
"Yeah, you're right," Chris said, looking at Kurt, "We're out of here. It's over between us Stephanie. Have fun with the Olympic Twit."  
  
Chris shot a look at the two of them before leaving, glad that things had pretty much gone without a hitch. He let Trish drag him out of the room and closed the door behind him. Trish took him to her locker room.  
  
"You ok Chris?" she said, trying to be sympathetic.  
  
"Yeah, I guess," Chris said hollowly, thinking of Stephanie and how he had been worried that Trish had slapped her. He was ready to kick her ass for that offense alone, but he knew that's not what Stephanie would want. And he wanted whatever Stephanie wanted.  
  
"It'll be ok?" she said, coming over to massage his shoulders.  
  
"I feel like getting a drink," Chris said, "Getting drunk out of my mind."  
  
"Ok, let's go to a bar then, we'll get so drunk you'll forget you ever found Stephanie," Trish said, plotting out the night in her mind.  
  
"Great, let's go," Chris said, plotting himself. They left shortly after.  
  
Kurt looked around the room. He and Chris sure had made a mess of things with their mock fight. Luckily it had gone according to plan. He went about picking things up, not bothering to look over at Stephanie, figuring that she was thinking about how the plan had gone as well.  
  
"Kurt," a weak voice said.  
  
"Yes?" Kurt said.  
  
"I don't feel good."  
  
Kurt looked up at Stephanie and saw that she was as pale as a ghost. She was holding her back and grimacing in pain. Kurt rushed over to her and helped her sit on the couch. She closed her eyes.  
  
"What is it Steph? Is it the baby?"  
  
"I don't know. I think it's my blood pressure," she said, trying to catch her breath.  
  
"Oh shit, this happened with Regan didn't it?"  
  
"Yeah, I think I just need to rest," she said, starting to lay down.  
  
"No way," Kurt said, picking her up, "Not after what happened with Regan. I'm taking you to the hospital."  
  
"Kurt, it's nothing really," she tried to say.  
  
"Nope, you're not swaying me on this one."  
  
Kurt and Stephanie headed out to the parking lot and he put her into his car. He rushed her to the nearest hospital. As soon as they were there, he parked quickly and carried her into the emergency room where they immediately whisked her off to be checked. Kurt decided to try and get a hold of Chris.  
  
Chris was at the bar ordering his and Trish's drinks. He was going to fool her into thinking that he was having rum and Coke, when he was just going to have plain Coke. He didn't need to be inebriated and accidentally really sleep with Trish. She had ordered a cosmopolitan. He got the drinks and headed over to the table.  
  
He didn't hear his phone ring when Kurt called, it being way too loud in the club. He sate and made small talk with Trish as he watched her devour her drink and get up for another. He watched as she was falling for exactly what they had planned.  
  
Kurt kept getting Chris's voice mail and left the same message every time, "Chris, it's Kurt. I had to take Stephanie to the hospital, they haven't told me anything yet. You might want to get down here."  
  
Kurt sat there waiting, hoping to either hear from Chris or hear about Stephanie. Neither thing seemed to be happening and it was frustrating. Finally a doctor came out of from behind the doors to the emergency area. He scanned the room quickly and walked over to Kurt.  
  
"Are you here with Mrs. Jericho?" he asked.  
  
"Yes, I'm her best friend. Is she ok? Is the baby ok?"  
  
"Yes, everything's fine. There was nothing wrong with the baby. Mrs. Jericho just suffered a sprained back and that was causing her to have a little bit of pain and that might have led her to be concerned about the baby, but I assure you the baby was never in trouble."  
  
Kurt sighed in relief, "Thank you. It's just she's had a history of high blood pressure while pregnant."  
  
"Yes, she informed us of that, so we've been monitoring her blood pressure and it's normal. About her back, was she assaulted in any way?" the doctor asked concerned.  
  
"She got in a fight with another woman who shoved her up against a wall. We're professional wrestlers."  
  
"Oh, well, it's in Mrs. Jericho's best interest to stay overnight so we can reduce the swelling of her back. We can't give her painkillers because of the pregnancy, so we'd like to keep her here so that she isn't any more uncomfortable than she is."  
  
"Ok, that sounds reasonable. And you're sure the baby is ok?"  
  
"Yes. There was nothing wrong to begin with. The baby is healthy and very safe."  
  
"Good, can I see her?" Kurt asked.  
  
"Of course. She's being taken up to the second floor as we speak so you can meet her up there."  
  
"Thanks."  
  
"She'll be in room 295."  
  
Kurt sighed in relief, glad that the baby hadn't been in any danger. He didn't want Stephanie hurt either, but he knew that she'd rather be hurt than have the baby be in danger. He made his way to the second floor and to her room. She was in a hospital gown lying on her side facing the door.  
  
"Hey Kurt," she said.  
  
"Stephanie, you look so much better," he said, noting that she was no longer pale or looking like she was in pain.  
  
"Yes, I'm feeling heaps better."  
  
"Glad to hear it."  
  
"Have you gotten a hold of Chris?"  
  
"No, just his voice mail."  
  
"He must still be out with Trish," Stephanie said, "He'll get the message before he goes to sleep."  
  
"You don't seem too concerned."  
  
"I'm fine Kurt, there's no need to be concerned."  
  
"So I heard. But if you had really been hurt I don't think either Chris or I would've been able to live with ourselves."  
  
"Well, I'm fine, and the baby was always fine. And my back is just sprained a little. Doctor's said once I get out of here tomorrow that I'm going to have to stay off my feet for a few weeks since I'm carrying extra weight and they don't want me to strain my back."  
  
"Aww, so you can't be at the shows," he pouted.  
  
"This works out perfectly Kurt," Stephanie said, a gleam in her eye.  
  
"Stephanie..." he said warningly.  
  
"No Kurt, I mean, think about it. This will get me away from the shows and that way it can really look like Chris and I are split up. He can tell her I'm moving out of the house. Or better yet, I can go to Chris's parents and then he can say I went to England."  
  
"Stephanie," Kurt said exasperated, "Trish almost injured you seriously. And you're still thinking of this plan?"  
  
"I'm not hurt Kurt, neither is my baby. And if I'm away from Trish, then she can't hurt me. She can go on thinking that she's having some romance with Chris. Then by the time her wedding onscreen rolls around, I'll be well enough to come back and drop the bombshell."  
  
"And how's that coming by the way?"  
  
"Well, I've been talking to Daddy about having a twist at the wedding. No wedding on television goes off without some sort of hitch. So I will go out during the wedding."  
  
"And do what?" Kurt asked, suddenly very curious.  
  
Stephanie smirked wickedly, "Well, since everyone will know I'm pregnant, seeing as how I'll be about six months at the time, I'm going to go out to say that I'm pregnant with Chris's child, which of course will be true, and then declare that Chris is indeed married to me, not Trish and that we've been playing her all along and she's fired."  
  
"Nice plan," Kurt said, genuinely impressed, "But I'm surprised that you and Chris are going to assert yourselves as married on television."  
  
"But we are married."  
  
"But you've never even been together in the storylines."  
  
"So, it's about time we give them a romance."  
  
"And all this will segue into you leaving on maternity leave."  
  
"Yup. And the best part, Trish will have no idea this is going to go down."  
  
Kurt shook his head, "I wonder what her reaction will be."  
  
Trish looked over at Chris through her drooping eyes. The alcohol was starting to take its effect and she was feeling a bit light-headed. She could tell that Chris was just as drunk as she was, he kept slurring his words together. They had danced for a while, but had been to wild and crazy out there, they'd had to sit down.  
  
"Trish, baby, let's go back to the hotel," Chris said suggestively.  
  
"Mmm, sounds great," she said, standing up.  
  
Chris went over to the obviously drunk woman and let her lean on him. He hadn't had a drop of alcohol and was feeling fine. She was hanging off of him as she stumbled out to his car. He drove back to the hotel and up to her room. He flinched at what he had to do, but leaned in to kiss her.  
  
"You kiss good," she said hazily as they broke apart.  
  
"Let's go inside," he mumbled.  
  
She managed to get the door open after a few tries and dragged Chris into her room, closing the door behind her. They kept kissing as they made there way into the bedroom. Chris let her lead him to the bed and then they laid down and kissed.  
  
"Trish, I'll be right back ok," Chris said, breaking the kiss.  
  
"Don't be long ok," Trish said, already taking off her clothes.  
  
He shuddered as she continued to undress. He went into the bathroom and waited there for a while. Trish was sure to fall asleep or pass out or something from all the alcohol she consumed. He stopped hearing her in the next room and tentatively opened the door to see Trish obviously naked under the covers. Perfect, he thought, just as they had planned. He went over and grabbed her key card from where she had dropped it on the ground and left the room.  
  
He walked up to his room and let himself inside, wondering if Stephanie was up. A quick look of his watch said it was 1:30 in the morning. She'd probably be asleep. The lights were all turned off she he figured she was really in bed. He turned on one of the lights in the living room so he wouldn't wake her. He looked in the bedroom and didn't see her there. That was weird. She wasn't anywhere else either.  
  
"She must be with Kurt," Chris said to himself.  
  
He walked over to the hotel phone and called the lobby, asking for Kurt Angle's room. They connected him and he waited for Kurt to pick up. The phone kept ringing and ringing until the option of leaving a message came up. He hung up the phone and decided to call Stephanie's cell phone. He picked up his phone and noticed the voice mail icon was on. He figured it must be Stephanie calling him and listened.  
  
His breath was pushed out of his body when he heard Stephanie was in the hospital. He was out of his room and into his car in no time flat. He drove to the hospital Kurt had said they were at and rushed inside. He hadn't said anything about what was wrong with Stephanie and panicked he ran up to the desk asking which room she was in. Once receiving the information he ran up the second floor, not bothering to wait for the elevator. He ran into the room and found Stephanie and Kurt talking.  
  
"Oh my God," he exclaimed, "What happened?"  
  
"Chris, you finally got Kurt's messages," Stephanie said relieved.  
  
Chris rushed over to her side, "What happened Stephy, is it the baby, is the baby ok? Are you ok?"  
  
"I'm fine, the baby's better than I am actually," she laughed.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"The baby wasn't hurt, I'm the one with a sprained back, hence me lying on my side," she explained.  
  
"Sprained back?"  
  
"From Trish shoving me against the wall," she said, rolling her eyes.  
  
"Trish did this!?!" Chris said, anger flaring up in his eyes.  
  
"Yeah, but it's ok, I'm fine, nothing a little rest won't fix. And the baby was always fine. Doctor said it was very healthy."  
  
"Ok," Chris said, trying to calm down, then turning to Kurt, "Thanks for watching out for her."  
  
"Not a problem, but I'm going to head out ok, I'm beat," Kurt said yawning, then going over to hug Stephanie gingerly, "Feel better."  
  
"I will, bye Kurt."  
  
"Bye you two."  
  
Chris watched Kurt leave then pulled up a chair to sit next to Stephanie, "So you're really ok?"  
  
"I'm really ok. They're just keeping me here to make sure that I'm not in too much pain since I can't take painkillers."  
  
"I understand. I'm sorry I didn't come sooner, but I couldn't hear my phone," he said, kissing her hand.  
  
"It's ok. Did everything work out?"  
  
"Yes, but that doesn't matter right now, you matter right now," he said softly.  
  
"Chris, I'm really ok," she told him.  
  
"I was just so scared that something had happened to you and the baby," he said, looking into her eyes.  
  
"No, nothing at all. Like I said, the baby is healthier than I am at the current moment. It wasn't in any danger."  
  
"But if you or the baby had been in trouble, I would've died."  
  
She leaned over and kissed his temple, "We're fine."  
  
Chris scowled and thought about Trish, "That bitch is so going to pay. She went too far this time."  
  
"I know, but let's try not to worry about it right now."  
  
"Oh, I won't worry about it right now. But when this is all over, Trish is going to get a piece of my mind." 


	15. Chapter 15

Stephanie woke up, her back stiff. She looked down at Chris, who had slept in the chair next to her the whole night. No doubt his back was going to be hurting too. She laughed quietly, they could both be stiff for a while. Chris stirred, hearing her laugh. He sat up groggily and took a deep breath.  
  
"Morning," Stephanie said.  
  
Chris looked up at her, "Morning baby. How are you feeling?"  
  
"I'm fine," she said, "My back's still sore, but overall I'm fine."  
  
"You sure," he said, climbing into the bed with her.  
  
"Yeah," she said, laying her head on his strong chest.  
  
"So what are we going to do now?"  
  
"I'm thinking about going to your parent's and staying with them and Regan so my back can heal."  
  
"That sounds like the best idea," he told her, running his finger in circles around her temple.  
  
"You can tell Trish I moved out," she said, trying to figure out what his reaction would be to not only Trish, but the plan as well.  
  
He sighed and looked down at her. She immediately knew after hearing that sigh that he was apprehensive about going through with the plan. She could always tell what he was thinking, and this time was no exception. She just had to convince him this was the right thing to do.  
  
"Stephanie, I--"  
  
She leaned up and pressed her finger to his lips, "I know what you're going to say."  
  
"You do?" he asked, kissing the tip of her finger.  
  
"Of course I do. Sweetie, if Trish thinks that I'm gone out of the picture, it'll help the plan. I know you don't want to go through with it after what happened last night, but I'm fine, see I'm ok."  
  
"But you might not have been and then you might've..."  
  
"Shh, it's ok, I'm ok, I swear. And if we go through with it, I won't even have to be around. I'll be safely tucked away in Canada with Regan."  
  
"Yeah, you would," he reasoned.  
  
"And she wouldn't even have to know where I was, because you could tell her I moved out or went to England even."  
  
"You've got a point," he said, slowly giving in.  
  
"See, you can't say it's not foolproof."  
  
"Steph, you know you don't have anything to prove around here."  
  
"That's not the point Chris. The point is that this witch is trying to take my family from right out under my nose," she said, laying her head in the crook of his neck, "And I'm not going to let it happen."  
  
"Well, at least I know I'm important," he teased.  
  
"Always have been."  
  
"Good, now let's get you out of here. We can fly to my parent's today, spend the weekend there, and then I can fly to the show on Monday."  
  
"Well, seems you've got this all figured out."  
  
"With you in my life, I gotta think on my toes."  
  
A few hours later the doctor gave Stephanie a clean bill of health and told her she could be discharged. He took her out to the car and let her get in. Since they both had their suitcases with them, they headed straight to the airport to see if they could get on any flights into Winnipeg.  
  
They were able to secure two tickets on the next flight and went to wait at the gate. Stephanie's back was still hurting so she sat on the floor in front of Chris's seat. He gently massaged her back as they waited.  
  
"Mmm, that feels good," she said.  
  
"Good. I still can't believe she would slam you up against the wall like that."  
  
"Don't worry about it."  
  
"Oh, ok Stephanie," Chris said sarcastically, "I'll just forget you got slammed up against a wall while you're pregnant with our child."  
  
She looked up and rolled her eyes, "Chris, don't get your panties in a bunch."  
  
He couldn't help himself, he laughed, "You know full well that I don't wear panties."  
  
"Oh really?" she said, getting up as they said the flight was boarding, "Seems to me that's not always the case."  
  
Chris got up and followed her, "Hey that was one time, and only because you dared me!"  
  
"Uh huh," she laughed, pulling him onto the plane.  
  
They sat down in their seats and waited for the plane to take off, teasing each other the whole time. The flight itself wasn't long at all and Stephanie and Chris were in Winnipeg in no time at all. After getting their luggage they went to rent a car to drive to Chris's parents.  
  
"Did you call and tell them we're coming?" Stephanie asked.  
  
"No, I thought a surprise was more appropriate," he told her, as he drove towards his parents.  
  
"Ok, it'll be nice to see your parents again, we never get to visit them."  
  
"That's true. I know they always love seeing you."  
  
"Who doesn't?" she said, leaning over to kiss his cheek.  
  
They got to his parent's house and pulled into the driveway. Chris got out and ran around to the other door to open it for Stephanie. She gingerly got out of the car, her back stiffened from sitting upright on the plane and car trips. He held her hand as they walked to the door and rang the doorbell.  
  
"Don't you have a key?" Stephanie asked.  
  
"Yeah, but I think it's a bit rude to just walk in the house."  
  
She shook her head, "You're crazy."  
  
Before Chris could respond, Chris's dad opened the door and looked surprised to see them there.  
  
"Chris, Stephanie, what are you two doing here?" Ted asked.  
  
"Steph and I felt a visit was in order," Chris said.  
  
"And we missed our little girl," Stephanie added.  
  
"Well, you're in luck that you caught us because we were just about to go to the mall and spoil our grandchild," he said, opening the door to them.  
  
"Oh, I'm sure she'd love that," Chris said, as they walked in the house, "Where is she?"  
  
"Kitchen baking cookies with your mother," he explained, "But don't I even get a hello from you two?"  
  
"Sorry Dad," Chris said, giving his father a manly half hug.  
  
"And how is my ever beautiful daughter-in-law?" he asked holding his arms open.  
  
"Wonderful as always," she said, giving him a hug.  
  
"It's so nice to see you, we always hate when we don't get to see you," he said returning her hug.  
  
"Nice to know I'm wanted around here," Chris scoffed.  
  
"Well, you weren't missing for two years so shush," Ted said.  
  
Stephanie took a sharp intake of breath as Ted patted her lower back. Chris saw her cringe and gently pulled her away from her father. He looked at her and silently asked if she was ok. She nodded slightly.  
  
"Stephanie, is everything ok?" Chris's father asked, sensing her discomfort, "Oh, you must be uncomfortable standing for so long with the baby."  
  
"Oh no Ted, it's not that, I kind of sprained my back last night," she said, sitting slowly on the couch.  
  
"And just how did that happen?"  
  
Chris looked at Stephanie, giving a look of whether or not to explain the truth. Chris's dad was no more of a hot head that Chris was, and knowing that someone had hurt his precious daughter-in-law, he might snap and do something rash. The Jericho men had a nasty temper.  
  
"Oh, nothing, the extra weight just caused me to sprain it," Stephanie said, hoping that explanation would fly with Chris's dad.  
  
"Oh, well then rest, let me go get Regan and Loretta," he said, walking out of the room.  
  
"You ok baby?" Chris asked, sitting next to Stephanie.  
  
"Yeah, your dad just kind of hit me too hard there," she said laughing.  
  
He kissed her cheek softly, "Ok."  
  
"Daddy!" a little girl's voice screamed at the top of her lungs.  
  
Chris grinned as Regan saw him as she walked in from the kitchen. He kneeled down and held his arms open to her. She ran as fast as she could into his awaiting arms, as he engulfed her in a huge hug. Stephanie smiled at the two of them.  
  
"Hey there Princess."  
  
"Daddy, you come see me?" she asked.  
  
"Of course I came to see you, you're my baby aren't you?"  
  
"Yeah," she said smiling sweetly.  
  
"Why don't you give Mommy a hug too," Chris said, pulling away from Regan.  
  
"Ok," Regan said, going over to Stephanie, "Hi Mama."  
  
"Hey there sweetie," scooping Regan up and sitting her on her lap, "Have you been a good girl?"  
  
"Uh huh," Regan nodded.  
  
"Chris, when did you get here?" his mom asked.  
  
"A little while ago. Stephanie and I wanted to spend the weekend with Regan."  
  
"Actually," Stephanie spoke up, "I sprained my back and I'm not supposed to do anything but rest for the next couple weeks, so I was hoping if I could stay here with you guys?"  
  
"Of course you can sweetie. You always know we love having you here," she whispered to Stephanie, "Probably more than we like having our son over."  
  
"Hey! Mom!" Chris pouted.  
  
"Oh, you know we love you, but we love the woman you married too."  
  
"Well, I like to think I made a good choice," Chris said, winking at Stephanie, who giggled.  
  
"So it's really ok if I stay?"  
  
"Absolutely."  
  
Regan yawned and leaned her head on Stephanie. Stephanie rubbed the girl's back as she closed her eyes. Chris smiled as Regan was obviously falling asleep. His mother hugged him and ushered him and his father into the kitchen to get him something eat. It didn't take long for Regan to fall asleep.  
  
"Chris," Stephanie whispered loudly.  
  
He came in from the kitchen a sandwich in hand, "Steph, did you call me?"  
  
"Yeah, can you carry Regan up to her room, I can't cause of the baby and my back."  
  
"Of course," he said, putting his sandwich on its plate and putting it on the side table.  
  
He went over to Stephanie and gently lifted Regan off of her lap. She instinctively laid her head on his shoulder and he started to carry her upstairs. She followed him silently as they went into one of the guest bedrooms. Stephanie pulled the covers and Chris laid Regan down on the bed, putting pillow next to her.  
  
"I think I'm going to take a nap with her," Stephanie told Chris.  
  
"You tired?"  
  
"Yeah, between the hospital and the plane trip, I'm beat," she said, laying down next to her daughter.  
  
"Ok," he said, kissing her then kissing Regan's head, "You two have a nice nap ok?"  
  
"I will," she said, smiling at him.  
  
Chris walked to the door and took a look at them. They were the two most beautiful things on earth to him. He smiled and left the room, closing the door behind him. He headed downstairs, picking up his sandwich on his way to the kitchen where his parents had congregated. He sat down in his usual spot.  
  
"You look too thin," his mom said, "Do you three eat enough on the road?"  
  
"Yes, Mom, we eat."  
  
"Well, I want to make sure, because Regan is a growing girl and Stephanie is eating for two now."  
  
"I know Mom, they're both eating fine. I have a feeling they're going to gain weight while they stay with you."  
  
"And what's wrong with that, they need a little meat on their bones."  
  
Chris rolled his eyes, "You baby us too much Mom."  
  
"You're my family, I have every right too," she said superiorly.  
  
"Whatever you say."  
  
"So what happened to Stephanie's back?" Chris's dad asked, "The real story."  
  
"You're father said she sprained it."  
  
"She did," he sighed as he thought about what had gone down, "She got in a fight."  
  
"A fight, but she's pregnant," his mother said horrified.  
  
"I know Mom, but it wasn't her fault. She got in a scuffle with one of the girls and she got slammed into a wall."  
  
His mother gasped, "Oh my God."  
  
"She's ok Mom, she'll be fine," Chris reassured her.  
  
"But nothing's wrong with the baby right?" his father asked.  
  
"No, the baby is perfectly healthy."  
  
"Good, good. We're so glad you came to visit," his mom said.  
  
"Mom, you act like we haven't seen you."  
  
"Well, I haven't seen you since you and Stephanie got married again. How is it living with her without her memory?"  
  
Chris looked at her in confusion. Then he remembered that only Kurt knew she had her memory back. He smiled at them, not showing that he hadn't known what they were talking about when they had asked the question.  
  
"It's great."  
  
"That's good to hear. You know when she was gone, we always worried about you and how you would fare without her," Loretta told him.  
  
"I think everyone was like that Mom."  
  
"Yes, but we saw how much her dying destroyed you. We thought you would never recover."  
  
"Of course, we never thought she would come back either," his father joked.  
  
"Well, I guess both of those came true, since she's back and I recovered right?"  
  
"We're just happy for you Chris."  
  
"I'm happy for me too," he said.  
  
And he'd be happy when this whole stupid plan was over. 


	16. Chapter 16

Chris didn't care if he never went back to the grind of the workplace. It was so much more relaxing here in Canada, staying with Stephanie and Regan. But in the morning, he'd have to leave them and he already knew it was going to be torture.  
  
"Penny for your thought?" Stephanie asked as they sat on the back porch watching Regan play in the snow with his parent's dog.  
  
"I wish we could stay here forever."  
  
"So do I."  
  
"I don't want to go back to work. It was bad enough when it was just Regan, but Regan AND you, I don't think I can make it."  
  
"I don't want you to go either, but it's only for a couple of weeks."  
  
"I just want to stay here with you guys," he whined.  
  
"You can't baby, Daddy will want you on the show. No special privileges because you're his son-in-law remember?"  
  
"I know," Chris said, "But can't he change that, just this once?"  
  
"I don't think so."  
  
"Did you tell them what happened?" Chris asked.  
  
"No, I just figure this is something that maybe I should keep from them."  
  
"So what did you tell them?"  
  
"That I just needed a break," she said, looking up at him from her spot on the porch swing.  
  
"Are you comfortable?"  
  
"Of course."  
  
They went back to the silence that they had fallen into earlier. She sat back lightly against him as they sat on his parent's porch, watching Regan play with his parent's dog in the snow. Stephanie wrapped Chris's arms around her, savoring every moment with him, since he was leaving tomorrow to go back to work.  
  
"So what are you going to tell Trish?" Stephanie asked.  
  
"Just that you moved out and went back to England," he said.  
  
"Ok, that sounds fair enough."  
  
"I wish I could rip her a new one after she sprained your back," Chris said, shaking his head.  
  
"Shh," she whispered, rubbing his hand soothingly, "There's no use in getting angry ok? I'm fine."  
  
"Daddy!" Regan said, running over to them.  
  
"Yes Princess?" he asked.  
  
"Come play!"  
  
"I'm sitting with Mommy Princess," he told her.  
  
"Pwease," she pouted.  
  
"God, you two know I can't resist that look," he turned to Stephanie, "Do you mind baby?"  
  
"No, go ahead," she said, leaning forward so he could get up, "I'll just watch you guys."  
  
"Ok," he said, leaning down to kiss her, "Do you want some pillows for your back or anything."  
  
"I'll take care of that," Chris's mom said, coming out back with a couple pillows in her arms, "We don't want you in any more pain than you have to be dear."  
  
Chris's mother came and put the pillows behind Stephanie's back making sure that she was comfortable. Stephanie's back was healing slowly but surely, the pain still there, but much more bearable. She leaned slowly on the pillows as Chris's mother sat down in one of the outdoor chairs next to Stephanie.  
  
"Thanks Loretta," Stephanie said, smiling at her mother-in-law.  
  
Chris ran into the snow with Regan, and picked her up, swinging her around in the air as she giggled happily. He started tickling her, causing her to erupt in a fit of the giggles as she tried to squirm her way out of his arms to end the tickle assault. Stephanie smiled as she watched the two of them play in the snow.  
  
"They're wonderful together aren't they?" Chris's mom said from the chair next to her.  
  
"Yeah, they are," Stephanie said, not taking her eyes off of them.  
  
"We used to worry about him, so much," she told her.  
  
"I'm sorry," Stephanie said, turning to look at her mother-in-law.  
  
"It's not your fault dear, but we all used to worry about him. Your parents would call us every week to tell us how he was doing, if Regan was ok. Sometimes we'd fear that he'd given up."  
  
"Chris could never give up," Stephanie said, shaking her head.  
  
"He almost did. If it weren't for that little girl he would've. It makes me shudder to think what might've happened."  
  
Stephanie went back to watching the two of them, "But we're ok now. He's ok now."  
  
"Thank goodness. I just don't want anything else hurting my little boy," Loretta said, getting up, "I have to go put the finishing touches on dinner. I'll see you three shortly."  
  
She left and Stephanie sighed. It was like everyone was trying to talk her out of this plan, even if they didn't know about it. She didn't want to hurt Chris, and she didn't really think she was, maybe she'd have to talk to him about that later. She didn't want to be doing anything against his will.  
  
She tended to forget that Chris had gone without her for two years, since they didn't talk about that time period too much. They had had one long conversation about it, but that was it. They kept it vaulted away, never to be discussed again. She knew it was hard for Chris to remember those years, and it was hard to think of her life without her family, even if she couldn't remember anything about herself.  
  
It was later that evening, and just liked she had planned earlier, Stephanie was trying to bring up the discussion that she wanted to have with Chris. She was lying on her side, facing him as he watched television. She grabbed the remote from his side and turned off the television.  
  
"What did you do that for?" he asked, turning to her.  
  
"I want to talk," she said simply.  
  
"About what?"  
  
"We don't have to go through with the plan. I can just call my dad and tell him what Trish did and then everything will be ok."  
  
"But we've already put so much work into it," he told her, scooting down to be face to face with her.  
  
"I know, but Chris, everyone is trying to tell me how bad this is for you. I don't want you to have to go through this for me."  
  
"You know I'd do any--"  
  
She quieted him, "I know. I want to do this for you."  
  
"No," he said firmly, "We go ahead with the plan, and that's final missy."  
  
She giggled, "I don't know what I'd do without you."  
  
"Well, I know what I'd do without you, and it's not pretty. Now, get some sleep," he said, kissing the tip of her nose.  
  
"I guess," she said, settling into the bed.  
  
"You know, it's always weird having you here," he told her as she laid her head on him.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because when I lived here, I never had a girl in my bed," he chuckled.  
  
"Well, that's good to know actually," she told him, running her palm across his stomach, "At least on my side of the fence."  
  
"I got lucky though, I have the most beautiful woman ever who gets to share my bed every single night."  
  
"Suck-up," she snorted.  
  
"Shut up," he said, laughing as he closed his eyes.  
  
Hours later, Chris woke up to hear a quiet weeping. He looked down, thinking it was Stephanie, but she was sleeping soundly. He got out from underneath her and silently got out of bed. He walked down the hallway and could hear the crying from Regan's room. He opened the door slowly.  
  
"Princess?"  
  
"Daddy," came the small voice.  
  
He came in further and knelt by her bed, "What's the matter Princess?"  
  
"I had a scary dream," she said.  
  
"Oh, Princess," he said, softly, "You want to go have a warm glass of milk downstairs?"  
  
"Ok," she said.  
  
He picked her up and wiped her eyes. He took her downstairs and into the kitchen where he warmed up a glass of milk for her. They sat at the kitchen table and he watched her, taking small sips until she set the glass down. She yawned and he walked into the living room, laying down on the couch and letting her lay on his chest.  
  
He played with her wavy, brown hair as she lay there, sucking on her thumb a little, her eyes opening and closing slowly. This scene had occurred many times while Stephanie was gone. Him being the one to comfort her, to assuage her tears, unlike now where Stephanie would comfort the little girl.  
  
"Daddy, tell story," she said quietly.  
  
"Which story Princess?" he said, still playing with her hair.  
  
"You and Mama," she said.  
  
This was a story he had told her many times, but Regan never seemed to get tired of it.  
  
"Well, one day, when I had just started in Grandpa's company, I was walking backstage, and saw the most beautiful woman in the world."  
  
"Mama right?" Regan said.  
  
"Yes, and Daddy couldn't take his eyes off of her. She was so pretty. Daddy knew that he had to get this girl to notice him, and so he went up and talked to her. Well, Mommy and Daddy became friends, and we liked to talk to each other all the time. And Mommy asked Grandpa to put her in a story with Daddy."  
  
"Where you made fun of Mama," Regan giggled.  
  
"Yes, where I made fun of Mama," he said, smirking as he thought of that particular storyline.  
  
"You kiss Mama too."  
  
"Yeah, I did, and everyone cheered because they thought it was the best thing that night. Then one day, Daddy decided that Mommy was the only girl that I wanted to be around."  
  
Stephanie walked downstairs silently, hearing Chris's voice coming from the living room. She stood outside the doorway and listened as Chris told the story of the two of them. She had never heard him tell this to Regan, but she seemed familiar with it.  
  
"And Daddy went up to Mommy and asked her to go out. And much to Daddy's surprise, she said yes."  
  
"Daddy happy?"  
  
"I was the most happiest person in the world."  
  
"And you go out with Mama?"  
  
"I did, and we kept going out and Daddy kept falling in love with Mommy because she was the best person in the whole world, and Daddy didn't want to be around anyone else. So Daddy told Mommy how much he loved her and Mommy said she loved Daddy too. Then Daddy asked Mommy to marry him, and she said yes, which made Daddy very happy. Then we got married--"  
  
"Where me?" Regan asked.  
  
"You came a little later. Mommy and Daddy were so happy when we got you. I don't think I'd ever be so happy. You were my very own baby girl."  
  
"I love you Daddy," Regan said softly, her voice muffled by her thumb.  
  
He kissed the top of her head, "I love you too Princess."  
  
"Then Mama go away," Regan said, continuing the story.  
  
"Yes, Mama went away and Daddy was very sad. But as long as he had his Regan, he knew that he could go on, because Regan is the most important thing in Daddy's world, now and forever."  
  
She giggled and Chris smiled. She always loved being the center of attention. It was one of the McMahon traits, ok, and a little bit of the Jericho in her as well. Stephanie couldn't help but smile as she heard the story.  
  
"Daddy no sad now."  
  
"No, Daddy's not sad. He was sad about Mommy, but Daddy had you and that was all he needed. I used to take you everywhere and you used to hang out with Kurt all the time while Daddy would wrestle."  
  
"And then Mommy came back," Stephanie said coming into the room, "Because she couldn't stay away from Daddy and Regan any longer."  
  
Chris looked up at her and smiled. She smiled down at him, coming over to where he was laying down. She leaned down and kissed him and then knelt slowly next to the couch. She looked down at Regan who had just drifted off to sleep.  
  
"She's asleep," Stephanie said quietly, "And you should get some sleep before you have to leave tomorrow."  
  
"I know," he said, slowly sitting up with Regan still on his chest, "I guess she can just sleep with us. She had a bad dream."  
  
"Ok," Stephanie nodded.  
  
She got up and Chris stood up, cradling Regan against him. They walked silently up to their bedroom and they laid Regan down in the middle before climbing in on either side of her. Chris leaned over Stephanie to give her a kiss before he went back to sleep, dreading having to leave them and see Trish the next day.  
  
Unfortunately the next day came and Chris had to leave. He gave Regan a tight hug, and Stephanie a passionate kiss before getting on the plane to the next show. He looked out the window on the plane, not wanting to face Trish. He got ticked off every time he thought about her and what she had done to Stephanie. He kept thinking about it until he had arrived at the arena.  
  
"Chris!" Trish said, jumping up and down obscenely as she saw him enter the arena. It looked to Chris like she had actually been waiting there to see him arrive.  
  
"Hey Trish," Chris said, managing to keep his composure.  
  
"Come on, we have things to discuss," she said happily, grabbing his hand and pulling him to his dressing room.  
  
Once inside she led him over to the couch and sat him down, "What do we have to discuss?"  
  
She sat down and straddled his lap, "Like what happened last Thursday after SmackDown."  
  
Chris had completely forgot what they had done, being so preoccupied with Stephanie and everything. He hadn't even remembered to go back in the morning to pretend like he had slept with her, instead spending the night next to Stephanie's hospital bed. A bed that Trish had put her in.  
  
"Oh, ok."  
  
"So, I'm a little hazy," she giggled, "Did we....you know?"  
  
Chris wanted to gag, "Um....now that I think about it, we did."  
  
Trish smirked to herself. She had finally reached the promise land. Now that she had shared Chris's bed so to speak, and Stephanie was practically out of the picture, it was all becoming too easy. Before long she would be Mrs. Chris Jericho, and all would be right in the world.  
  
"Yeah, I noticed you had left before I woke up."  
  
"I had to get home."  
  
"Oh, well don't do that again," she joked, leaning over to kiss him.  
  
Chris tentatively kissed her back, "Ok."  
  
"So where's Stephanie?" Trish asked, not really wanting to know, but having a feeling that it would be good news for her.  
  
"She left me," Chris said, "She actually went back to England."  
  
Trish feigned shock, "Are you kidding me?"  
  
"No, she left. I don't know. Maybe it's for the best."  
  
"Oh, I'm so sorry Chris."  
  
Chris knew that was a fake statement as soon as it left her mouth. Trish was so very transparent. Maybe this plan should've been harder, but Trish, well she wasn't the brightest person around. She was very, very gullible, which made it easier to trick her.  
  
"I think I'll be ok."  
  
"Let's get your mind off of it then," Trish said seductively, licking her lips.  
  
"Well, I was thinking about our television wedding."  
  
"Oh goodie," Trish said, clapping her hands like a little girl. A sadistic, calculating little girl.  
  
"I was thinking that it be really grand you know, go all out. We haven't had a TV wedding in a while you know."  
  
"I know, and it's going to happen so soon too, like two weeks. You're supposed to propose tonight right?"  
  
"Yes, I've been practicing what I'm going to say," he told her.  
  
"Great, can I hear?" she asked.  
  
"Nope, it's a surprise."  
  
"Well, I've been looking for wedding gowns to use for the ceremony," she told him.  
  
"Oh, found anything?"  
  
"Yes, I want this to be perfect....Who knows, maybe this can be practice in case we ever get the real thing."  
  
Trish looked at him sweetly. She was sure that he'd want to marry her, being the one to comfort him through such a difficult time. She'd fit right in with the family, and she'd be so familiar with getting to spend all that cash on her and her alone.  
  
Chris could almost see the wheels turning in her head. Oh, she would think she'd be getting what she wanted. The operative word being "think." She had no idea just what was in store for her. But she'd learn, she'd learn that you never mess with Stephanie McMahon-Jericho. She was just going to learn the hard way.  
  
Later that evening, Chris made his way down to the ring after Trish's match against Jazz. He climbed in the ring where Trish was celebrating her hard fought victory. He grabbed a microphone from the time keeper and he walked to the middle of the ring.  
  
"Congratulations Trish," he started, "You deserve that win. But that's not why I'm out here tonight."  
  
Trish gave him a confused look, just like she was supposed to.  
  
"Ever since you kissed me after that one night I saved you, you've been like my best friend. And you've been so much more than that. I want you forever Trish," he said, rolling his eyes slightly as he got down on his knee, "Marry me."  
  
Trish made it look like she was in shock, "Oh my God, Chris, YES!"  
  
The arena erupted in cheers as Chris stood up and hugged her. She hugged him back and then she kissed him with a little too much tongue. Chris pulled away, trying not to look disgusted. He slipped the fake ring they had gotten from the prop guy onto her finger and she started showing it off to the crowd. He looked at her before whispering to himself.  
  
"Get ready for the fireworks Trish." 


	17. Chapter 17

"What about this one?"  
  
"Yeah, nice, fine, whatever."  
  
"I don't know, it doesn't really show off my figure."  
  
"Then find another one."  
  
Chris was sitting in some bridal shop place, looking at what seemed an endless supply of white satin and tulle. Trish had insisted that he come with her to watch her try on various wedding gowns. Since he had nothing better or more productive to do, he had gone alone. Might has well see what the lamb being led to the slaughter was going to look like.  
  
She came back out in a white satin dress with a halter top, and as she turned around, he saw it was also backless, the dress dropping down to just above her ass. Any other guy and they might be drooling, but to Chris, she was just another girl. Now Stephanie in that dress, they'd have to wipe him up off the ground.  
  
"What about this one?" she asked, giving him a little twirl.  
  
"Nice," he said uninterestedly.  
  
"Good," she beamed, "I like this one too."  
  
"Then get it."  
  
She came over and kneeled in front of his chair, "I'm excited about this wedding."  
  
He knew why she was so excited about it. She thought that this would be the catalst for some imaginary life she thought she'd get with Chris. The poor dear, she was being set up for a fall. If she wasn't such a bitch, and hadn't hurt his wife, and potentially harm his wife, he might feel sorry for her.  
  
Trish grinned at him. She was getting very excited about this upcoming wedding. It had been a few days since the show with the proposal and he hadn't heard from Stephanie in days. He had told her that in confidence. He had told everyone else in the company that she was visiting family, what a bunch of bullshit that was.  
  
"Trish, I was thinking..."  
  
"Yes," she smiled.  
  
"I thought that maybe we should include the rest of the company in the ceremony."  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Yeah, I mean this is supposed to be a pretty big deal."  
  
"I think that's a great idea!" she squealed, giving him a hug.  
  
"Good," he said deviously.  
  
He had other motives for wanting everyone to be there. If the entire locker room was going to be there, the more humiliated Trish would be. He couldn't wait to see her face. He hoped someone would be there to take pictures. He was sure that they would be absolutely priceless.  
  
They bought the dress and Chris drove her back to the hotel, and it wasn't a moment to soon. She had tried to invite herself over to his house, but he had told her some lie about something to get her to change her mind. He didn't want her anywhere near the home that he shared with Stephanie.  
  
He drove back to his house and parked outside in the driveway. He got out and walked inside his house. It was so lonely being here by himself since Regan and Stephanie were still in Canada. He went to the kitchen to get himself a beer from the fridge and he saw Stephanie's ultrasound picture stuck up on the fridge. He stood there and looked at it for a moment. He smiled as he thought about his impending child. He got the sudden urge to call Stephanie and see how she was. He grabbed the phone and dialed his parents.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Hey Mom."  
  
"Chris!" she said happily, "How are you?"  
  
"I'm ok Mom."  
  
"We watched the show on Monday. Why are you in that storyline? You're already married."  
  
"Mom, I know. But you know Stephanie and I have never been married on WWE television."  
  
"Why is that exactly?" his mother asked curiously.  
  
Chris laughed, "Because it didn't fit in."  
  
"I think you should change that."  
  
"We'll see Mom. Can I please speak to my wife?"  
  
"Hold on a moment."  
  
Chris waited for several moments before he heard a shuffling on the phone. Moments later, he heard Stephanie's voice come on over the line. He involuntarily smiled.  
  
"Chris?"  
  
"It's so good to hear your voice," he told her.  
  
"That's nice. What made you call?"  
  
"I missed you. And I saw the baby's picture."  
  
"We're both fine," she told him.  
  
"Good to hear. And my little girl?"  
  
"She's fine. She loves it here."  
  
"I know. She loves to get all that attention and getting spoiled.....just like her mother."  
  
"I'm not spoiled anymore," she said smartly.  
  
"Oh really?"  
  
"I'm 29 years old. I think my father thinks I'm beyond spoiling," she laughed.  
  
"I wasn't talking about you father baby."  
  
"Ok, I know you spoil me, but that's your job."  
  
"Oh, it's my job?"  
  
"Yes, you're the one who wanted to marry me, and you're the one who asked, so that means that you are responsible for keeping me happy."  
  
"You know I always do."  
  
"And you do a great job at it too."  
  
"Well, that's all that matters," he turned serious and whispered, "I miss you."  
  
"I miss you too," she whispered just as softly.  
  
"How is that possible?" he asked, "I went without you for so long, now I don't see you for four days and I feel like I'm being tortured."  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry baby, but you'll see us soon," she told him.  
  
"I'm lonely."  
  
"Why don't you go crash over at Shane's house if you're that lonely, or go have dinner with my parents," she suggested.  
  
"I don't know," he said, "I'll seem pathetic."  
  
"Come on sweetie, they're family."  
  
"I know, but it'll feel weird without you there," he said to her.  
  
"It's not weird for me here with your parents."  
  
"Well, that's cause my parents are fairly normal, while yours are absolutely crazy," he said, laughing at his own joke.  
  
"Touché."  
  
Chris heard the doorbell ring, "Someone's at the door."  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Steph, I'm in the kitchen, how the hell should I know who's at the door?"  
  
"Well go look."  
  
"Ok."  
  
He walked through the kitchen, through the living room, and then through the front hall on his way to the front door. It was a big house, it took time to walk places. He finally got to the front door, almost slipping on one of Regan's toys along the way. He stumbled to the door, and opened it. Trish was on the other side and she was dressed in a barely there skirt and a low cut tank top with a jacket over it.  
  
"What are you doing here?" he asked.  
  
"I was bored, so I wanted to come hang out with you," she said, smiling sweetly.  
  
"Baby, who is it?"  
  
"Oh yeah, Trish is at the door."  
  
"Oh my God," Stephanie muttered, "What is the bitch doing there?"  
  
"So you want to hang out," Chris said.  
  
"Yeah, do you mind?"  
  
"Actually, I'm on a very important phone call right now."  
  
Trish let herself into the house and Chris frowned. He wanted to throw her out, this was not work, this was his home and he'd be damned if he had Trish come in here and try to make it like she was the Queen of the castle, because nothing could be further from the truth at this moment.  
  
"I'll just stay for a while," she said, looking around.  
  
"I think you should go," Chris said sternly.  
  
"Oh, come on Chris, just for a little while."  
  
"Chris," Stephanie said over the phone, "I don't like the fact she's in our house."  
  
"Me neither," he said to her, "Don't worry, it'll be taken care of as soon as possible."  
  
"Ok, I don't like her looking through our personal things," Stephanie said worriedly.  
  
"I know, I'll talk to you later."  
  
"Love you."  
  
"Ditto," he told her, not blowing their cover, "Bye."  
  
He hung up the phone and found that Trish was not where she was just moments before. He went off into the living room and found her looking through all the pictures on the mantle. He wanted to yank her away and drag her out to the curb where she belonged.  
  
"This house could use some color," Trish said, looking around at the large room.  
  
She was already planning what she'd do to it. First things first, she'd get rid of everything that had to do with Stephanie. She wouldn't tolerate anything that remotely reminded her of Stephanie. Then she'd get rid of the kid stuff that was laying around, if only she could send Regan and the new baby off somewhere. Then the house would be perfect.  
  
"The house is fine the way it is," he said coldly.  
  
"I could help you redecorate."  
  
"It doesn't need redecorating."  
  
"Don't worry," she said, coming over to him, "We'll fix it up nicely."  
  
"No, we won't. I like my house."  
  
"Sure you do," she said patronizingly, "But we'll just fix it up here and there."  
  
"Trish, I want you out of my house now," he said firmly.  
  
"What?" she asked, slightly shocked.  
  
"You heard me, I don't like you being here."  
  
"But we're friends," she said, shaking her head in disbelief.  
  
"That may be," he practically spat out, "But you can't stay."  
  
He had to think up something quick. She might get suspicious otherwise, and that wasn't what needed to happen. He could come up with a lie, he was good at that. He racked his brain for something and then his lips curled up into a smile.  
  
"I'm going over to Shane's."  
  
"Oh," Trish said, "Well, I'll come!"  
  
"You can't," he said quickly, "Family only."  
  
"Oh," Trish said, "Well, can't you make an exception."  
  
"Nope," he said, starting to usher her out of the house, "Can't come."  
  
"Ok," she said as they reached the door, "Did you want to meet up later."  
  
"I don't think so. Got things to do with the in-laws, see ya," he said pushing her out the door, "Family stuff you know."  
  
He shut the door behind him and gave a sigh of relief. She was out of here. Trish stood on the other side of the door a little flustered by having been rushed out of the house. She straightened her jacket on and walked down the steps. As she reached the middle of the driveway she looked back up at the large house.  
  
"Someday that'll all be mine." 


	18. Chapter 18

_Chris was looking into Stephanie's face, but it was so pale, so very pale that it was almost transparent.  And her eyes, they were devoid of any kind of emotion, they had dark circles under them like she hadn't slept in weeks.  She was staring back at him, and she looked so despondent that Chris just wanted to take her into his arms and hold her until she felt better.  But they were too far apart for him to just wrap his arms around her.  And she was making no attempt to come closer._

_It was only then he noticed where they were.  They were back on the beach, the beach where he had found her again.  He also then just noticed that he was holding Regan, just like he had done that fateful day that he had gotten Stephanie back.  Why were they here?  He was so confused, he just looked around, but everything but the water and Stephanie were dark, like it was the dead of night._

_"Steph," he whispered "What are you doing here?"_

_"Let me go," she said, in a hoarse voice, like her mouth was dry or something._

_"What are you talking about?"_

_"Let me go," she repeated._

_"Stephy, come with me and we'll go home, you look like you could use some sleep."_

_"I can't go with you Chris."_

_"Of course you can, we'll go home and get you to bed, you look exhausted, that can't be good for the baby."_

_"There is no baby."_

_"Steph, you're starting to freak me out ok?  Let's just go."_

_"I'm so sorry Chris," she whispered, "This is my home now."_

_"But I don't understand?" he said, looking around frantically wondering how they had gotten here, and what was wrong with his wife._

_"You dreamed me up Chris.  I never came back, I'm dead, I died in that plane crash, you just can't see the truth and let me go," she said sadly._

_"No you didn't!" he screamed, "I found you and you came back and we're married and we're having a baby!"_

_"No Chris, you imagined those things, they never happened.  I know you want me back, but I'm gone Chris…."_

_"I didn't imagine them, they happened!" he yelled, wanting her to stop this stupid game._

_"Goodbye Chris, be happy," she said as she started fading away._

_"No, you're not gone!"_

_"Be happy with Trish," she whispered as she was almost gone, "I love you."_

_"Trish," he said, once again confused._

_He tried walking to Stephanie, she couldn't be gone, she was just hiding from him or something.  She was real, she had been real.  As he went to take that first step he found himself pulled back by a woman's arms.  He turned around and saw Trish._

_"Come on baby, are you done here?"_

_"What?"_

_"Done saying goodbye to Stephanie.  We have a flight to catch," she explained looking at him weirdly._

_"What are you doing here?"_

_"You wanted me to come with you for moral support," she said, smiling than kissing his cheek, "You said you needed your two best girls with you."_

_"Best girls?"_

_"Me and Regan silly."_

_Regan woke up and looked up at Trish, "Mama! Hold me!"_

_"Come here sweetie," Trish said, taking Regan from Chris's arms.  He let her go willingly, letting his arms drop by his sides.  He looked back towards the water, but there was nothing there._

_"Why does she call you Mama?" Chris asked dumbly._

_"Because she just called me that one day remember?  And you said it was fine since Stephanie is gone."_

_"But she's not gone!" he protested._

_"Sweetie, of course she isn't," Trish said, running her hand down his cheek, "She'll always be with us in spirit.  But come on, I wanted to discuss wedding plans over lunch."_

_"But I want Stephanie!"_

~

Chris woke up with a start.  He shot out of bed.  It was a dream.  But what if that dream was his reality.  Was Stephanie really here?  Or was she still dead laying at the bottom of that sea?  He looked to his bedside and saw it was empty.  Dear God no, he thought, rushing towards the phone.  He dialed her cell phone number quickly.  Her voice message came on.

"Hey, you've reached Stephanie Jericho, and I'm not here at the moment, or I am and I'm too busy to talk to you.  Either way, leave me a nice long message and I'll get back to you.  And Chris, I love you."

Chris's mind was so hazy, he didn't know if that message was new or old or what.  When she had died, he left her messages on everything, just so he could hear her voice and pretend she was still alive.  Was that the same message?  He wasn't sure if it was or wasn't and that scared him.  She couldn't still be dead!  It couldn't have all just been his imagination.

"Steph, baby, it's me.  I really want to--"

"Hello?" came her groggy voice over the phone.

Chris gave out a huge sigh of relief.  She was still here, she wasn't a figment of his imagination, she was alive and she was with him.  She was just in Winnipeg with his parents and Regan was there with them.  He felt his heartbeat return to some semblance of normal and took a couple deep breaths.

"If this is some kind of prank call," he could hear Stephanie mumble on the other line, "I'm killing whoever this is."

"Steph, it's me," he finally answered.

"Chris?"

"Yeah."

"Baby, don't you think it's a little late to be calling, it's like 3 in the morning."

"I know.  I just needed to hear your voice."

"You couldn't have picked a time where I was, you know, awake," she said sarcastically.

"I'm sorry, I just woke up and had the urge to talk to you."

"Are you sure it was the urge to talk?" she joked.

"Very funny, where's my little girl?"

"Next to me, sleeping, like I'd like to be doing.  She's taking advantage of the fact her Daddy isn't here to sleep with me."

Chris laughed, "And my other little one?"

"Fine, fine, like's to keep me up at night though.  Kind of like my husband."

"Keep you up at night?" he asked.

"Oh baby, I forgot to tell you, the baby kicked for the first time a couple days ago."

"And I missed it!?!"

"I'm sorry Chris."

"It's ok.  I guess I'll just have to wait to feel it."

"Only two more days sweetheart and then we're home free," Stephanie said happily.

He smiled at her giddiness, "Yeah, I can't wait to have you back here.  Back home where you belong."

"Me neither," she said yawning, "Is there anything else you wanted."  
"No, not really, I just really needed to hear your voice."

She yawned again, "Why?"

"Just because.  I had to reassure myself you were still here."

"Where else would I be?" she said as Chris heard shuffling on the other line like she was lying down or something.

"Dead," he said bluntly.

"Chris, is everything alright over there?" she asked concerned.

"Yeah, I just had this dream where you were really dead."

"Oh sweetie, I'm sorry."

"I'll be ok, I just wish the next two days would hurry up and pass so I can have you back here with me."

"They will, just try to get some sleep," she said soothingly.

"Ok, I'll let you go now," he said, "Night, I love you."

"I love you too," she said before hanging up.

Chris lay in bed, looking up at the ceiling, wondering what had prompted that dream.  Maybe he was getting anxious about this whole thing with Trish.  The mock wedding was in two days and he was feeling the heat.  The angle had been set up perfectly to a tee.  Only a select few people knew what was going to happen, Stephanie, Chris, Kurt, and Vince had been told about it, but not the reason why they were planning it.

He finally dozed off and fell asleep, the dreams he had been having previously not plaguing him this time.  The rest of the weekend passed too slowly for him.  He just wanted them to pass quickly so he could go to Raw and get this plan over with, but it seemed every minute lasted an hour, and every hour was a day. 

Finally, finally he found himself on a plane to the next show in Chicago.  Stephanie and Regan's plane was landing an hour before Raw was slated to start and they'd be taking a limo to the arena straight from the airport.  He got off the plane and got his things before going to rent a car and driving himself to the arena.  He smiled as he thought about the plan and what would be done tonight.

He got to the arena and parked his car, taking his bag out and his tux that he was going to where later on.  It was the same tux that he had worn to both his weddings.  And now he'd be wearing it to keep his life.  He walked inside and Trish rushed towards him.

"Chris!" she squealed, "I'm so excited for tonight!"

"Me too," he said dully.

"Oh my God, it's going to be great," she gushed, pulling him towards her locker room, "What do you think of my hair?"

It was done up in a French twist type thing, with a few strands hanging down by her face, "It's nice, I like it."

"I was hoping you would."

"When are you going to get dressed?"

"Soon," she told him, looking down at her white robe, "I was hoping to talk to you before I got dressed."

Chris could only imagine what she wanted to talk about, but let her drag her to her dressing room anyways.  He'd only have to put up with this a little while longer, then he'd be free from this onslaught that she provided him.  They entered the room and she closed and locked the door.

"You don't know how happy I am about tonight."

"You know it's just storyline right Trish?" he asked, not sure if she really did get it.

"Of course I do, but that's what I wanted to talk about Chris," she said softly, gently.

"Ok."

"I really, really like you," she said, running her hands through his hair, "And I think I may be falling in love with you."

"Oh wow," Chris said, trying to act surprised, "That's news to me."

"Yeah, I know, but I can't help it.  These past few months, with us together have been so great.  And me being able to help you through your marital problems has been great, and I think you and I are great together.  And I was hoping we could take it beyond the storyline."

"I don't know what to say Trish."

"I just wanna be with you Chris," she said, leaning in to kiss his neck.

Chris gently took her face, not wanting her to touch him with her nasty lips, "I'd really like to be with you Trish."

She smirked to herself.  It had all fallen into place perfectly, every single piece of the puzzle was in place.  Stephanie was thousands of miles away, probably not even caring what was going on, Regan was with her grandparent's, and she had Chris all to herself.  And she would have him all to herself for the rest of her life.

"Oh, I'm so happy," she said, throwing her arms around him.

Chris hugged her back, "Me too, and tonight is going to go perfectly."

"I know, I saw the schedule, no interruptions," she said, clapping her hands.

"Nope, but I've got an interview I need to pre-record, so I'll talk to you later, ok?" he said, kissing her cheek.

"Ok, bye Chris, I'll see you down the aisle."

"That you will," Chris said, smirking.

He walked down the hallway, ready to do the interview he was talking about earlier.  He recited what he was supposed to say before he got there.  He was supposed to act like he was happy about the upcoming nuptials.  But he was happy for a different reason.

"You ready for your interview?" the production people asked.

"You bet I am," Chris said.

"Ok, so we'll film on five, you ready Terri?"

"Yeah," the petite blonde said.

"Ok, then in five, four three, two, one, action," the production guy said.

"Chris Jericho, you are set to marry Trish Stratus later on this evening, how are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling great Terri, I'm ready to go out there and marry the woman of my dreams, what's better than that?"

"That's nice, do you think that everything will go smoothly?"

"Of course it will, I'm certain it will, but you never know, there may be a few twists and turns here and there," Chris said winking.

"And that's a wrap, great job you guys."

"No problem," Chris said before walking off.  

He went back to his locker room to change into his tuxedo.  He grabbed his garment bag and unzipped it.  He slowly changed into his tux, making sure that everything looked perfect with him.  He looked at his watch, Stephanie should be arriving here soon.  

He waited for a while in the locker room, putting his cuff links on.  He went to the mirror and combed his hair back in a tight ponytail.  He actually looked really, really good.  But hey, he was planning a little revenge tonight and you always wanted to look your best for that.

When he was through, he left the room and went down to the other side of the arena, that was nearly deserted.  This is where Stephanie would be hiding for the evening.  He went up to the door where there was a light shining from underneath and knocked softly, lest he be heard.

The door flew open and two arms were thrown him.  He grinned and sighed, finally feeling better now that she was here.  She rested her head on his shoulder and let herself melt into his embrace.  He ran his hands through her brown tresses and pulled them inside the room.

"God I've missed you," she whispered.

"Me too," he whispered back, "God, you're beautiful."

She pulled away, "Thank you."

He looked her over, "Well, someone sure is pregnant."

She rubbed her stomach, "How did you know?"

He ran his hand across her stomach hoping to feel his baby kick, "Have they been active?"

"Not today so much, but yesterday, somersaults in there," she laughed, then felt the baby kick.  She moved his hand over to where the baby was kicking, "They must've heard you."

He laughed, "Now where's my beautiful girl?"

"Sleeping," she said, gesturing towards the couch, "She didn't take her nap yesterday."

"Oh," he whispered, going over to kiss her on the forehead, "But the plan is going to work perfectly."

"I hope so," she said, wrapping her arms around him, "You ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be."


	19. Chapter 19

Everyone stood backstage waiting to go out for what promised to be the "Wedding of the Century." They were all dressed to the nines for the ceremony between Chris and Trish. It was all going how Trish had planned. Now all she had to do was find Chris. She looked around and didn't see him anywhere, she wanted to talk to him before they had to go out there for the segment.  
  
"I really have to go," Chris said to Stephanie as they sat in her secret locker room.  
  
"I know, you just look so handsome, I don't want to give you up right now," she told him.  
  
"Yeah, well, I figure that the humiliation will be complete if she realizes that she can't have this sexy beast," he joked.  
  
She giggled, "Good strategy because you are all mine," she said wrapping her arms around his waist possessively.  
  
"Yes, all yours. But right now I have to pretend to be Trish's."  
  
"Do you absolutely have to?" she whined, leaning her head on his shoulder and leaning over to kiss his neck softly.  
  
He pulled away and kissed her mouth gently, "Yeah."  
  
He gave her another lingering kiss, making sure she knew how much he loved her, and only her. Then he pulled away slowly, giving her a loving gaze. She took his hand and gave it a squeeze. With a smile and another kiss he left to execute the plan.  
  
He went down to the gorilla, spotting Kurt immediately, giving him a wink. Kurt nodded his head knowingly, anxious to see this all go down. He gestured to where Trish was standing and Chris walked over to her, putting on his most charming smile.  
  
"Chris!" she exclaimed happily, "I've been looking all over for you!"  
  
"Really? I've been looking all over for you!" he yelled, feigning glee.  
  
She giggled wildly, "We probably just kept missing each other."  
  
"Probably," he said disinterestedly, "When are we starting?"  
  
"Well, everyone is going down to the ring now," she said, looking towards the roster, who were making their way out to the ring during the commercial break.  
  
The production team ushered everyone out until it was just Chris and Trish standing there. Chris looking over at her and she actually looked like she was nervous. God, did she actually think that they were getting married? He wanted to remind her that this was a fake ceremony and they weren't actually getting hitched. She grabbed his hand and he stared at her as she beamed at him. He saw a production guy motioning for him, telling him that he was supposed to go out soon.  
  
"Well, I guess that's my cue," he told her.  
  
"Uh huh," she smiled.  
  
He went to pull away from her, but she pulled him back forcefully, actually surprising him with her strength. Before he could ask what she was doing, she pressed her lips against his. He almost pushed her away in disgust, but remembered it would all be over soon. He pulled away and gave her a strained smile.  
  
"See you out there," she said, grinning at him.  
  
"Oh, most definitely."  
  
He heard his music go off and walked out there, forgoing his usual entrance routine and walking down to the ring, the cheers of the fans almost deafening. Wait until later, he thought to himself as he smirked at some guys holding Jericho signs. He shook a few of his fellow wrestlers hands and walked into the elaborately decorated ring.  
  
Stephanie had made sure that the set-up for the wedding would be all out. The ring was in its usual important event red carpet and it was littered with white and pink rose petals. The ropes were gone and garlands in its place, adorned with twinkly lights. There were two big flower arrangements on either side of the "minister," who would be presiding over the ceremony.  
  
He stood in front of the minister and looked around, seeing the entire roster out there, save for the McMahon family. He looked up the ramp as the wedding march began and saw Trish come out, smile plastered on her face. She smiled to the crowd, taking her time to get to the ring. The crowed oohed and ahhed over here and Chris could tell she was basking in all the attention. Good, let her live it up now, soon it would all be over.  
  
She got to the ring and Chris went over to help her up the steps. She smiled gratefully at him and together they walked up to the minister. Chris looked over at her, pretending that this was the happiest moment of his life. It wasn't that hard if he pictured it was his actual wedding day with Stephanie.  
  
"Ladies and gentlemen, we are gathered her to join Chris Jericho and Trish Stratus into the bonds of matrimony," the minister began, "Marriage is a sacred institution and not to be entered into lightly. These two people have come here to declare their love and devotion to each other for as long as they live. Each have written vows, Chris, you may go first."  
  
"Trish," Chris started, putting on a cheesy grin, "What can I say that I haven't already said about you? You're a spectacular woman, and I am so honored and so privileged to get to be your husband. I'm the luckiest man in the world today, for reasons that no one but me will understand. Today is the beginning of my happiness and I'll start it with the woman that I love."  
  
He grinned at the end of her speech and she grinned back. The silly fool had no idea that his so-called "vows" had been more cryptic than anything else. A slight clue as to what was in store for her. But the less she knew, the more surprised she would be, and that was just what he wanted  
  
"Trish," the minister said, "You may say your vows now."  
  
She gazed up at Chris lovingly, "You are the man of my dreams, and I'm so blessed to have had you save me that first time. You've been so good to me Chris, and I hope I've been good to you. I've helped you through the good times and the bad times, when you thought that your life was in ruins. I hope that I can be there for the rest of my life and that you'll accept me as you have in the recent past. I can't imagine anyone more perfect than you Chris, and I want to spend the rest of my life showing you that you and everything you have, I care about very, very much."  
  
Chris could just imagine how she would use everything he had, especially the money part of the equation and the family name part of her equation. He just smiled and bore everything she had to say. The minister then took the rings that they had gotten and handed held them before continuing.  
  
"Before we proceed, if anyone objects to this union, speak now or forever hold your peace."  
  
Chris looked to Kurt, who was leaning casually on one of the ring posts, seemingly unaffected and disinterested in the entire ceremony, as he should be. Trish waited on baited breath, just wanting to get this over with. Chris knew she would probably expect something to happen right now. Well, that would've ruined the element of surprise if Stephanie had come out now.  
  
"If no one has anything to say, we shall go on. Chris, take this ring," he held up the ring, "And put it on Trish's finger as you say, 'Trish, I thee wed.'"  
  
Chris took the ring and slipped on her finger, "Trish, I thee wed."  
  
Trish smiled up at him, this was just how she wanted things to be in real life. The world watching her, the spotlight on her and her alone. And soon, oh so soon, she would get all that. This wedding would give Chris ideas and she would of course be the one he wanted after Stephanie left him. She hoped that Stephanie, wherever she was, was watching this and realizing just what she had lost and Trish had won.  
  
"Now Trish, take this ring," the minister said, handing her the other ring, "And put it on Chris's finger as you say, 'Chris, I thee wed.'"  
  
Trish went to slip the ring on his finger when all of a sudden the Y2J countdown clock sounded off. Chris looked down to Kurt who was smirking and looking up at the ramp. He himself looked there, waiting for her to appear. Trish jerked on his hand.  
  
"Chris, what's going on?" she asked frantically, this was ruining her perfect ceremony.  
  
Chris merely shrugged and feigned ignorance, "I have no idea."  
  
"Damn it," she muttered, "I bet those idiots at production screwed up and started randomly playing your music."  
  
"Yeah, we'll see," Chris said, his gaze still on the entrance.  
  
Suddenly just as the countdown reached 0.00, Stephanie stepped out, dressed in a very smart pantsuit that covered up her pregnant stomach pretty effectively. The crowd boomed with cheers as Stephanie made her first appearance on WWE television since she had been found alive. She just smiled at them and let them cheer their hearts out as she paced the stage.  
  
"What the hell is going on?" Trish fumed to Chris.  
  
"Well, well, well," Stephanie started, "Look what we have here, a pretty little wedding with the perfect bride and groom. Don't they make a cute couple everyone?"  
  
The crowd booed. Stephanie nodded her head. Chris just smiled and crossed his arms.  
  
"Yeah, I didn't think so either, so I thought it was my duty to come out here and spice things up a little," Stephanie said, giving a little twirl.  
  
Trish could not believe this. What was that bitch doing here!?! She went over to where the minister's microphone stand had been and snatched it off the stand before going back over to where Chris was standing. She put a possessive arm through his.  
  
"We're trying to have a serious ceremony!" Trish screamed into the microphone.  
  
"Oh, I'm so sorry then," Stephanie said, "Why don't you go ahead and finish?"  
  
"Fine, I'd love to," Trish gloated, giving Stephanie a glance that said she was the winner in this little bout. If only Trish knew.  
  
"Oh wait, that's right, you can't," Stephanie said nonchalantly.  
  
"What!?!" Trish said.  
  
"Well, it seems that I've taken after my ex-husband," Stephanie said, referring to her storyline with Hunter, "Except without the drugging, roll the footage monkeys."  
  
Chris laughed as she used one of his terms. The titantron flared up and a hand-held video was being played. They showed Chris and Stephanie sitting in a convertible driving down the strip in Vegas. Chris was driving as Stephanie looked around.  
  
"So here we are in Vegas," Chris said to the camera as he drove, "And we're headed to a wedding chapel to get hitched aren't we baby?"  
  
"You bet," Stephanie said enthusiastically, "I was thinking we could go to the Little White Chapel."  
  
"Hopefully you'll have better luck this time, right Steph?"  
  
"Yeah, maybe we should get the package with the prenup," she laughed, "Did you get that Kurt, I want the one with the prenup."  
  
"Got it," came Kurt's voice from behind the camera.  
  
"Hey, at least I won't get drugged this time," she said as the wind whipped through her hair.  
  
"There it is," Chris said, pulling into the drive-thru, "We want this quick. We don't have too much time to waste."  
  
"Oh, I wonder why that is?" Stephanie said, leaning over to kiss him, "He can't wait to get me back to the bedroom for the honeymoon."  
  
Chris laughed and drove into the "tunnel of love." He and Stephanie oohed and awed over the corny, little pictures and statues. They pulled up to the lady at the drive-thru and got their marriage license and all that. The ceremony was quick and in a blink it was over and all that was left was Chris and Stephanie kissing passionately.  
  
Stephanie pulled away, "Now let's go gamble!"  
  
The video ended and Stephanie had to hold in her giggles at seeing it. They had filmed that a while ago, before her back incident. It was funny seeing it again. She saw the same amused looks on Kurt and Chris's faces, but Trish was a whole different story. She looked a little green around the gills.  
  
"So Trish, hate to break it to ya, but Chris is MY husband, not yours, and there's no way you would ever get your hands on him!"  
  
"You bitch!" Trish yelled, breaking character.  
  
"Oh, and you know why he's mine Trish, well, he IS the father of my baby," she said, rubbing it in.  
  
"You weren't supposed to want him, you were kissing Kurt!"  
  
The crowd and the roster gasped at the new information. Stephanie just took it in stride, "Oh, were we? Or was that just an elaborate set-up to bring you down Trish."  
  
Trish fumed and looked to Chris, who just nodded his head, "You played me?"  
  
"We played you like a fiddle," Stephanie said, "We knew what you wanted all along Trish, and me and my husband are anything but stupid. Did you think we wouldn't figure out what you really wanted? The McMahon name and more importantly the McMahon money."  
  
"You weren't supposed to love him, you can't even fucking remember him!"  
  
"Oh, but can't I? You spouted all those things about Chris being with you while I was gone, but did it ever occur to you, that I would ask him, and more importantly, Trish, I can remember every last little detail. I've been remembering since my wedding with Chris."  
  
Kurt could hear the roster murmuring to themselves, shocked by this new information. Stephanie actually remembered everything, they were shocked to find that out. Not only that, but the fact that they were breaking character. They all waited to see what Stephanie would do next.  
  
Trish looked like she was going to throw up, "You knew? You all set me up, you made me look like a fool."  
  
"Yes, Trish, we did. Stephanie McMahon-Jericho never backs down from a challenge, ever, and you were wrong to think I would. And Trish, you sprained my back when you threw me up against that wall, and I've been in Winnipeg since it happened, not England."  
  
"Bitch," was all Trish could mutter.  
  
"And Trish, since you endangered another employee, not to mention tried to pull underhanded things, I think I have the distinct privilege of saying," she cleared her throat, "Trish, YOU'RE FIRED!"  
  
Trish looked like she was about to faint and grabbed onto Chris's arm. He simply stepped back and let her be, instead walking to the steps. Trish grabbed his leg pathetically trying to get him to stay.  
  
"Chris, no! It was never about the money, ever!" she yelled  
  
"Get off me bitch," he said calmly.  
  
"No! She's lying, can't you see, she's lying about everything."  
  
Chris pulled her up and got right in her face, "You never meant anything to me. I was with Stephanie the entire time, and we never had a single problem, just like it's always been. You got caught Trish, deal with it. Like I would ever give up her for someone like you, low-down and dirty. You're lucky I don't do something I'll regret for you injuring my wife and trying to hurt my baby. I never want to see your face again, do you hear me? You are nothing but a lying, manipulative bitch."  
  
Chris threw her down and walked down the steps and up the ramp. He reached Stephanie and took her in his arms, hugging her tightly. He stepped back and wrapped a protective arm around her waist as they looked down to the ring where Trish was lying in a white heap, crying her eyes out. If it were any other person, they'd probably feel bad for her, but she wasn't any other person.  
  
"So Trish," Stephanie said, raising the microphone to her lips, "How does it feel to be played?"  
  
With that she threw down the microphone and pulled Chris to her, kissing him deeply. Chris dipped her down, much like he had done at King of the Ring 2000. She reached up and ran her hands through his hair as he pulled her back to a standing position. Stephanie blew a kiss towards the crowd and her and Chris walked backstage.  
  
As soon as they were back there, Stephanie's whole family were anxiously standing there, having watched the entire thing play out. They hadn't known about Stephanie's returned memory and she could see their faces, wondering if it could possibly be true. Stephanie nodded at them and was immediately engulfed into a hug by her father. She could hear her mother sobbing in happiness and Shane had a huge grin on his face.  
  
"Why didn't you tell us?" Vince asked, "About everything."  
  
"We felt like we could deal with it ourselves Daddy. We knew if we got you involved that you would just try to control the situation."  
  
"But could you tell us that you had your memory back at least?" Linda asked.  
  
"I wanted to Mom, but we wanted to use it against Trish," Stephanie said, going over to hug her mom.  
  
"How long has it been back?" Shane said.  
  
"Since Chris and I renewed our vows."  
  
"That long?" Vince asked incredulously, "Well, you sure had us fooled."  
  
"That was the point."  
  
"I just wish you had told us about everything that was happening," Shane said, "We could've helped you, we're McMahons, it's what we do."  
  
As they were having this little family reunion, Trish came storming backstage. Her veil had been ripped off and her hair was very unkempt. Her dress was dirty from being on the floor of the ring and her eyes were glowing with anger. She eyed Stephanie and saw nothing but red.  
  
"You stupid bitch!" she snarled as she walked down the steps.  
  
"Oh, go away Trish," Stephanie said.  
  
"You ruined everything, you've always ruined everything!" Trish yelled.  
  
"No! You ruined everything Trish, the day you decided to mess with us," Chris interjected.  
  
"Shut up!" Trish screamed, "This is between me and her."  
  
"Not if I have anything to say about it," Chris told her.  
  
"I don't care what you think, asshole," Trish growled at him.  
  
In a flash, so fast that nobody could stop it, Trish speared Stephanie to the cold concrete floor. She mounted Stephanie and started punching her in the face, closed-fist. Stephanie tried to cover herself up, but the initial blow had stunned her and she found it hard to fight back. As soon as it started though, Chris had wrenched Trish off Stephanie and threw her to the ground.  
  
"Don't you EVER lay a hand on my wife again," he said, his voice dangerous.  
  
He quickly went to Stephanie's side and saw that she had a large cut on her forehead, most likely from Trish's ring, and a bloody nose. He helped her up, and she was a little unsteady on her feet. She leaned against Chris as he held her.  
  
"Are you ok?" he whispered.  
  
"Yeah, I think."  
  
"It's ok, we'll take you to get checked out, looks like you might need some stitches," he said, eyeing her cut.  
  
"Ok," she said as she saw her father pulling Trish up.  
  
"Security, have this woman escorted out of the building and make sure she leaves the premises," Vince said as security started leading Trish away.  
  
"I'll get you Stephanie! I will get you and there is nothing you can do about it, you hear me?!? NOTHING!"  
  
"Yeah, shows what she knows," Chris said to Stephanie, but she didn't hear.  
  
She fainted to the ground. 


	20. Chapter 20

Chris paced nervously across the waiting room. He replayed that moment over and over again in his mind. Looking over to Stephanie and seeing her crumble to the ground, her hair falling lifelessly around her face. Everything after that was such a blur, all he could remember was him standing there motionless as voices screamed around him, trainers rushing to his wife. He vaguely remembered Shane pushing him into the ambulance with Stephanie, but after that, there was nothing.  
  
He couldn't do this again, he couldn't be put through this again. It was too much, if he lost her again, he wouldn't be able to stand it, at all. He could not survive that again. He tried not to think of Trish and all the things he would love to do to her, but so many horrible things were passing through his mind.  
  
"Daddy?"  
  
Chris looked down and saw Regan looking up at him innocently, "Yes Princess?"  
  
"What we doing here?" she asked.  
  
He picked her up easily and kissed her cheek, "Mommy got sick so we had to come here to make sure she'll be ok."  
  
"She have cold?"  
  
"No, it's a little bit more than a cold."  
  
"Oh."  
  
In truth, Chris didn't know how Stephanie was doing, nobody had come out and told him how she was or how their baby was. It was making him nervous that they were keeping him waiting for so long. What could be taking them so long that they couldn't come out here and at least give him an update? He looked around the waiting room. Vince and Linda were sitting next to each other, Linda holding Vince's hand tightly as he whispered something to her, trying to ease her nervousness. Shane sat in the corner, his head leaned back against the wall, eyes closed deep in thought. Kurt was sitting on the other side, wringing his hands, trying to hope for the best.  
  
Chris put Regan down, "Why don't you go lie down on that couch over there sweetie and try to sleep. It's way past your bedtime."  
  
"I no tired Daddy," she told him.  
  
"I know, but it'll make me feel better to know that you're getting a good night's sleep."  
  
"Ok," she nodded, "I tell Mama g'night."  
  
"You can't tell her right now, but when Daddy sees her, I'll be sure to tell her that you said goodnight."  
  
"Kay Daddy."  
  
He picked her up, setting her down on the waiting room couch. He took his jacket and covered her with it, kissing her forehead softly. She gave him a soft smile before closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep. He gave a look heavenward, thanking God once again for giving him his little girl. If it weren't for her, he'd have either gone crazy or died by now.  
  
"Night Princess," he said softly.  
  
He stood back up and gave another look around the waiting room. Deciding that this was too depressing he quickly left and went outside to get a breath of fresh air. The hospital was stifling him and he couldn't bear it anymore. That clean smell and bright fluorescent lights were getting to him. He stepped out into the clean, night air and took a deep breath. He sat down on a bench and looked skyward.  
  
The night was clear and the stars were shining so brightly. Once upon a time, he would look up and envision Stephanie as one of those stars, looking down on him as he tried to make it without her. Never before had the possibility of her death been so real to him. Not even when he thought she had died before.  
  
Sure, they had said she died, but for the days after the plane crash, he had gone on believing, in some deep, dark crevice of his soul that she was alive. They never found her body, nor any of her body parts, nothing to positively identify her. Nothing except her belongings. He had held onto that last hope that she wasn't gone. As time went by, he accepted that she was gone, but having never found her, it was like she was just away somewhere, and she would come back soon. And lo and behold, it had happened.  
  
But now, here he was, an actual hospital and she was in it. She was lying on some hospital bed, or God forbid an operating table and death had never seemed more real. And it wasn't just her, it was their baby, this poor, innocent little thing that had never hurt anyone, and their life may be hanging in the balance. God, if he lost both of them, he didn't know how he would react. He felt someone's presence behind him and then sit down next to him. He gave a glance to the other person and then went back to staring up at the sky.  
  
"Any word?" Chris asked simply.  
  
"No, nothing yet."  
  
"What the fuck could they be doing to her?" Chris said angrily, slamming his hand down on the bench next to him.  
  
"I don't know, I just don't know anymore."  
  
"God, why did I let her go through with this?" Chris said, putting his head in his hands.  
  
"You couldn't have known what Trish would do," Shane told him, putting a comforting hand on his back.  
  
"But still, she's pregnant, I shouldn't have let her come out there, she could've done it over the titantron or something."  
  
"This is Stephanie we're talking about. You can't tell her no because she will charm you until you give in."  
  
"I should've put my foot down with this one."  
  
"She wouldn't have stood for it, she would've done it anyways, regardless of what you said," Shane said, "She stubborn and bull-headed, just like you are. It's what makes you perfect for each other."  
  
"And look where it landed us, at the hospital."  
  
"If I know my sister, and I know my sister, she's not going anywhere, she's too stubborn to let herself go anywhere," Shane reassured him.  
  
"If I could've just stopped Trish," Chris said, wanting to hit his head against a wall at his stupidity.  
  
"Chris, let it go, there's nothing you can do now, but wait."  
  
"Let it go! I could've killed two of the most important things in my life. She could be dying, our baby could be dead!" he said, tears streaming down his face, tears he didn't even realize.  
  
"Chris!" Shane said, grabbing him by the shoulders and shaking him, "This is NOT your fault! You are not the one who did this to her, you are not the one who tackled her or punched her!"  
  
"I might as well have been, I didn't protect her."  
  
"None of us did.....none of us did."  
  
"I don't know what to do."  
  
"You should come back inside and wait with us, you'll feel better if you have people around, if you have Regan around."  
  
"Oh God, Regan! What if they die, what am I going to tell her?" Chris cried, "She can't lose her mother twice."  
  
"She's not going to lose Stephanie, none of us are, now come back inside," Shane said, standing up.  
  
"I'll be in, in a second," Chris said, wiping his eyes.  
  
"Ok, don't be too long, you don't know when they'll tell us what's going on."  
  
Chris nodded as Shane left him alone again. He wiped off his cheeks, trying to dry them of the tears that had fallen. Crying wasn't going to solve anything, it wouldn't turn back time, it wouldn't make anything better. He stared straight ahead into the darkness of the night. The silence was killing him out here. He closed his eyes painfully, blocking out the sound of Stephanie hitting the ground with a sick thud.  
  
"Please God, don't take her again," Chris whispered, "Just please don't take her from me. And not our baby either."  
  
He got up quietly, forcing himself to go back inside, his steps slow and heavy. He shoved his hands in his pockets, head down as he went back to the waiting room. He walked inside and felt everyone's eyes on him. He couldn't bear to look any of them in the eyes and simply took a seat next to Linda. He felt her wrap him in a hug and he just cried into her shoulder.  
  
"It's ok Chris, shh, it'll be ok," Linda whispered, trying to comfort him, this scene so reminiscent of the last time they lost Stephanie.  
  
He sat there, letting his mother-in-law comfort him, trying to draw strength from somewhere, anywhere. He just couldn't go through this all again. The first time had nearly broken him. He couldn't do it a second time, he couldn't wake up in the morning without her beside him again. It was all too much.  
  
"Are you here with Mrs. Jericho?" a doctor asked, walking into the room.  
  
"Yes, we're her family," Vince said, speaking up.  
  
Chris pulled away from Linda and wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. He prepared himself for the worst. He mentally pictured the doctor telling him that both his wife and child were dead and they weren't coming back this time. He steeled his nerves, willing himself to look up at the doctor who held his fate in the palm of her hands.  
  
"Well, she's a very lucky woman," she told them, "She'll be just fine."  
  
Chris let out the breath he had been holding and bit his lip in happiness. He wanted to run up to the doctor and kiss her, thanking her for saving his wife, and not letting him be alone again. He just didn't know how the doctor would take it. He couldn't find the words to begin what he wanted to say.  
  
"What happened to her?" Shane asked.  
  
"Well, it was scary there for a while. She fainted because of the blood she had lost from the gash on her head and her broken nose. The EMT's explained she had suffered blunt trauma to her stomach and that caused her to go into labor prematurely while we were clearing up her head. She was unconscious at the time..."  
  
"Are you saying she had the baby?" Chris finally asked, "It's too soon."  
  
"Well, we weren't sure if it was going to happen or not. It was touch and go really. We couldn't give her the usual drugs that we give to women who go into premature labor because she wasn't able to take them, being unconscious, so we gave drugs to her via IV to try and stop her contractions. It's my understanding that she's about 7 months pregnant--"  
  
"Yeah," Chris interrupted.  
  
"So we wanted to try to keep the baby in utero as long as possible," she informed them, "Thankfully, she took to the drugs well and we were able to stop the labor. So she should be able to carry to full term and she and the baby should be just fine. She just needs a lot of bed rest right now."  
  
"Oh thank God," Linda said, taking Vince's hand in relief.  
  
"Can I go see her?" Chris asked, "I'm her husband."  
  
"She's resting comfortably right now," the doctor said, "But I don't see why you couldn't see her."  
  
Chris nodded gratefully before getting up. He got a reassuring squeeze of the hand from Linda and an "I told you so" look from Shane. He walked over to where the doctor was and she motioned for him to follow her. She took him through the doors and he followed her obediently until she arrived at a room.  
  
"Here you go," she smiled kindly.  
  
"I just wanted to thank you," Chris said, "For everything."  
  
"It's my pleasure," she told him, "And as it turns out, we found out the sex of your baby. Would you like to know?"  
  
"Does she know?" he asked.  
  
"No."  
  
"We'll think about it," he said.  
  
"That's fine," she smiled before leaving.  
  
Chris went through the door and saw Stephanie lying there peacefully. He smiled as he saw her face. It wasn't the sickly pale it had been earlier, her cheeks were much more full of color. He looked around her and saw her hooked up to some monitoring machines and saw a machine connected to something under her blanket, most likely her stomach to monitor the baby. He sat down next to her and took her hand, pressing the palm against his cheek before kissing her fingers.  
  
"Hey baby, I'm so happy to know you're ok," he said, though she was asleep, "I'm sorry for everything that happened. If I had just protected you more, this never would've happened and you would be ok and we'd be in our hotel room, celebrating our good fortune at getting rid of Trish."  
  
"Well, where's the champagne to celebrate?" a hoarse whisper came from her mouth.  
  
"Steph!" he exclaimed, standing up so he could look at her face.  
  
"Yeah, it's me," she said, opening her eyes to look up at him, "Well, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out I'm in the hospital."  
  
"Yeah," he said, brushing her hair back with his hand.  
  
"And what happened to get me stuck here?"  
  
"How much do you remember?"  
  
"Um...you helping me up after Trish hit me," she answered.  
  
"Well, you fainted and we rushed you to the hospital and you had some stitches and a broken nose and then you went into labor--"  
  
"Oh my God!" she exclaimed, then lifted her blanket, checking to see if she had a flat tummy or not. She sighed in relief as she still saw her swollen belly, "Oh thank goodness."  
  
"They were able to stop your contractions and the baby is going to be just fine, you can carry it to term," he comforted her.  
  
"Oh, that's good to hear, that stupid bitch," she muttered, "Can't believe she'd do this."  
  
"I know," he said, leaning down to kiss her forehead, "I should've been protecting you. It's my fault you're in here in the first place."  
  
"Hey, now where did you get that idea?" she said, gripping his hand tightly.  
  
He looked away in shame, "I should've stopped her, I shouldn't have even let her get near you. I wasn't quick enough to protect you."  
  
"Oh dear God Chris," she said, reaching up to turn his face to her, "You had nothing to do with this, nothing at all. If you did, I would've kicked your ass out of my room, but you weren't the one that put me here."  
  
"I just feel so responsible."  
  
"Well, don't, because you're not. Sweetie, there are going to be times where you can't protect me, that's the cold, hard truth. That doesn't mean you love me any less, or you aren't being the best husband in the world. Don't you think sometimes I hate watching you go out there and get beat on day in and day out, but I know it's going to happen."  
  
"How do you know all the right things to say?"  
  
"I've been with you far too long," she said, giving him a smirk.  
  
He leaned down to kiss her softly as she wrapped her hand around his head, letting her fingers gently rub the back of his neck. He kissed her for a long moment and she could feel their cheeks getting wet with his tears. She pulled away and looked up at him, taking her thumb and erasing the tears from his cheeks.  
  
"Hey, no tears," she said, softly.  
  
"Sorry," he apologized, "I just thought I had lost you again."  
  
"Shh," she whispered, bringing his head down to kiss his forehead before he laid his head on her chest. She played with his hair, soothing his nerves, "I'm not going anywhere, you should know that by now."  
  
"They weren't telling me anything and I was so worried, I can't lose you again Steph, Regan can't lose you either."  
  
"Where's Regan?"  
  
"She's fine, she's laying out in the waiting room with your family and Kurt."  
  
"Ok, well, neither of you are losing me ok, get that through your thick skull."  
  
"Ok," he said, giving a small laugh.  
  
"Good, just making sure you know," she said, playing with his hair.  
  
"They know what sex the baby is," he said, raising an eyebrow in curiosity.  
  
"Really?" she asked, "Did you find out?"  
  
"No, of course not, I mean, we never did with Regan, why start now?"  
  
"You're right, I was just wondering if you could possibly know," she paused, "I didn't like Trish's threat tonight."  
  
"Neither did I," he admitted.  
  
"It scares me."  
  
"Don't worry Steph, I promise you this, she will never hurt you again. As long as I live and breathe, she will never touch you again." 


	21. Chapter 21

A/N: Sorry it took me so long to update.  
  
~  
  
"Are you comfortable?"  
  
"Yes!" she cried, "You've only asked me that about a million times!"  
  
"I can't help it," Chris told her as he brought in more pillows for her to lie on.  
  
"I know," she said, smiling softly.  
  
They had made Stephanie stay in the hospital for three days, just in case she should prematurely go into labor again. Fortunately she had been given a clean bill of health, and was released. Of course that didn't stop Chris from being overly paranoid. She was trying to settle herself in bed, but he kept bringing in more pillows.  
  
"Chris, I think I'm fine," she said from between the mountain of pillows.  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"Positive," she said, "Why don't you go play with Regan or something. She's in the playroom."  
  
"I don't wanna leave you alone," he said with obvious apprehension.  
  
"Chris, I'm not going to suddenly implode if you leave the room."  
  
"Ok...I guess."  
  
"If you're so worried bring Regan in here."  
  
"I don't want her to disturb you."  
  
"She won't disturb me," Stephanie said.  
  
Chris nodded, giving in, and left the room. Stephanie took a breath of relief. She loved Chris to death, but he was getting on her nerves. She needed Regan here as a buffer. Chris came into the room with Regan riding piggyback, giggling the entire time. Chris dumped her on the bed where she crawled up to where Stephanie was sitting.  
  
"Mama sick?" she asked.  
  
"Yeah, just a little," she said.  
  
Regan snuggled up to her, "Baby sick too?"  
  
"No, the baby's not sick," she answered kindly.  
  
"Oh," Regan said nodding like she understood, "You had to go to the doctor's?"  
  
"Mommy wasn't feeling well Princess," Chris told her.  
  
"Feel better?"  
  
"Much."  
  
Regan clapped her hands in happiness as Stephanie laughed. Stephanie grabbed Regan and pulled her closer to her. Chris leaned over and kissed Stephanie's cheek. She looked at him and gave him a sweet smile.  
  
"You want something to eat?" he asked.  
  
"I guess," she said.  
  
"You should eat something."  
  
"I said 'I guess,'" she retorted.  
  
"Ok, I'll make you something. Regan do you want dessert?" he asked, since they had finished lunch a bit earlier.  
  
"Ice cream!" she shouted in excitement.  
  
"Ok, so that's one meal for my Stephy, and some ice cream for my Princess."  
  
"Sounds good," Stephanie replied.  
  
Chris smiled and hopped out of bed. He headed down to the kitchen where he started to make Stephanie's food. As he was preparing it, the phone rang. Yelling that he would get it, so as not to disturb Stephanie, he picked up the portable phone off the counter.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
There was nothing on the other line.  
  
"Um, hello?" he repeated.  
  
The next sound he heard was the dial tone.  
  
Chris shrugged, thinking it must've been a wrong number. He got Stephanie's food ready and then got Regan's ice cream. Just as he was about to bring it up to them, the doorbell rang. He jogged to the door and swung it open.  
  
"Chris!"  
  
"Hey Linda, Vince, what brings you here?"  
  
"We wanted to make sure Stephanie was settled in," Vince told him.  
  
"Oh, well she's upstairs resting, but feel free to go on up."  
  
"We will."  
  
Chris watched as Vince and Linda went up the staircase. Stephanie moved Regan's hand so she could feel where the baby was kicking. Regan giggled and smiled up at Stephanie in wonderment. Stephanie leaned down and kissed her forehead. She door opened and she expected to see Chris coming in with the food but saw her mom and dad instead.  
  
"Hi Mom, Daddy," she said, sitting herself up a little.  
  
Regan got up and ran to the edge of the bed, holding her arms out. Vince picked her up and kissed her cheek, "Hi Gampa!"  
  
"Hello my beautiful girl," Vince said.  
  
"What are you guys doing here?" Stephanie asked.  
  
"We wanted to make sure that you were all settled in and everything," Linda explained.  
  
"I'm fine Mom," Stephanie said, "I just need to rest."  
  
"We haven't really gotten to talk to you since that night," she said, sitting on the edge of the bed, "There's so much that we need to say."  
  
"Like what?" Stephanie asked curiously.  
  
"What you said that night, it was true?" Linda asked.  
  
"What did I say Mom?" she asked curiously, thinking back to that night.  
  
"That you had your memory back," Vince said, also sitting on the bed.  
  
"Yeah, I do," she nodded.  
  
She saw her mother's face light up. She guessed that they had thought it was a ploy to get Trish, but no, it was true. Vince grinned at her, and grabbed Linda's hand. Linda came over to hug Stephanie and when she pulled away, she looked into Stephanie's eyes.  
  
"So you know I'm your mother?" Linda said, searching Stephanie's eyes.  
  
"Yes Mom, I know who you are, I know who Daddy is, I know who everyone is."  
  
Linda's eyes glistened with tears, "I just needed to make sure, it was almost too good to be true."  
  
"I'm here Mommy," Stephanie said, "Stephanie, not anyone else."  
  
"We just, we never thought this day would arrive," she said, "We never thought you'd be alive, and we never thought we'd get to see you again, and this is all so overwhelming."  
  
Stephanie hugged her mother again, reassuring her with her presence. She looked over her mother's shoulder to see her father, who, to her complete surprise, had tears in his eyes. This had really affected them, but she was glad that the truth was out, and they could speak to her and know that she knew who she was and where she came from. Not to mention she wouldn't have to listen to stupid stories about herself as they tried to conjure up her memory.  
  
"Hey, I got some food," Chris said, walking in on the scene.  
  
"Good, I'm starving," Stephanie said as he walked over and set the tray down in front of her, "Ooh, grilled cheese, I love when you make me that."  
  
"I know," he said, kissing her forehead and then taking the dish of ice cream and handing it to Regan.  
  
"So what's going on?" Chris asked, noticing the tension in the room.  
  
"Mom and Dad were just asking about my memory," she answered, taking a bite of her sandwich.  
  
"Oh, yeah, we're sorry we kept that from you, but we needed to use it to get to Trish."  
  
"What happened to Trish anyways?" Stephanie asked, looking at her parents and Chris as they shot glances to one another.  
  
"She's gone," Vince said, "She got her last paycheck and we sent her packing."  
  
Stephanie smiled at Chris, "Good."  
  
"Yeah, we thought you'd like that," Chris told her.  
  
"Linda, we better be going, we have that board meeting."  
  
"Ok," Linda said, hugging Stephanie again, "You and Chris bring yourselves and Regan over for dinner soon, ok?"  
  
"I will Mom," she said, hugging back.  
  
"And you take it easy," Vince said, hugging her as well, "We don't want that little baby to come out too soon."  
  
She rolled her eyes, "Yes Daddy."  
  
Her parents left and Chris went back to laying next to her, watching as she and Regan ate their food. Stephanie glanced over at him, giving him weird looks. His expression was so sublime and peaceful; she wanted to laugh. She finished her food and set the tray on the ground and put Regan's ice cream dish on it too. She laid back down and turned on her side, looking at Chris with Regan between them.  
  
"What are you thinking?"  
  
"That it feels good to know Trish is out of the way."  
  
"Yeah, it does," she said grinning, "It only took forever to do."  
  
"Not forever."  
  
"Really?"  
  
"You haven't had the baby have you?"  
  
"No," she laughed, "So I guess it hasn't been forever."  
  
"We don't even have any baby names."  
  
"We've been so busy, we haven't had time," she pointed out.  
  
"I've been thinking about it," he told her.  
  
"You have?"  
  
"Yeah," he said, a little sheepishly, "I mean, I always wondered what I would name my kid if I ever had one again. I didn't think I would, but well, you were gone and, yeah, I've thought about it."  
  
"So lay them on me," she smiled.  
  
"Um, I like Arista for a girl and Bryant for a boy."  
  
Stephanie could tell that he had had those names for a very long time and she knew that he had been thinking about them for years. Years she had been gone. She could picture him thinking of children he'd never have, thinking she was gone. She wanted to make him happy, and thank goodness she liked the names he picked.  
  
"I like them," she said.  
  
"Yeah?" he said hopefully.  
  
"Yeah," she nodded, "They're good names."  
  
"Thanks," he said, leaning over to kiss her.  
  
Chris and Stephanie were mid-kiss when the phone rang. Stephanie groaned and Chris pulled away to grab the phone, which was on the nightstand. He took it and answered it. There was nothing on the other line. What was it with these damn wrong numbers? He hung up again and kissed Stephanie.  
  
"Wrong number?" she asked.  
  
"Seems so." 


	22. Chapter 22

A/N: Wow, I'm SO sorry for the lack of updates for this, I guess I just got caught up with other stories, but here you go. I hope that you enjoy it and review it nonetheless. :)  
  
~  
  
He lay there and rubbed her stomach gently. She was asleep, but he wasn't, he was just watching her sleep. He had to go back to work tomorrow, at least for the day. Vince was planning on having him fake an injury angle and then letting him have time off to spend with Stephanie before she had the baby. He was glad for that time off, he wanted to be with Stephanie every waking moment and it was becoming harder and harder to leave her behind.  
  
Everyone had been pretty shocked, yet happy to hear that Stephanie had her memory back. She couldn't recall how many people had called and just wanted to talk to her because they knew she'd remember things. It was like she was taking a quiz and they'd just ask question after question about her past. She would just laugh it off and answer them.  
  
He didn't want to go to sleep, he just wanted to stare at her. He could feel their baby moving around in her abdomen and he sighed happily thinking about their baby, which was going to be born in a couple of weeks. His anticipation was growing ever stronger as the time grew near. He wanted to hold his baby in his arms; he was so excited for it.  
  
"Go to sleep," Stephanie mumbled, opening her eyes ever so slightly, just enough to see Chris.  
  
"Nah."  
  
She snuggled against him, "You'll miss your flight if you stay awake any longer."  
  
"Good, maybe I will and then I can stay with you."  
  
"You know you have to go," she pointed out to him, before closing her eyes, "Besides, it's only for a day."  
  
"That's one day I'll be without you," he told her.  
  
"Suck it up baby," she yawned, "And let the pregnant woman get some sleep."  
  
"Sorry."  
  
"It's ok, you just don't want a crabby lady with you all the time do you?"  
  
"I even love you when you're crabby."  
  
"Really? Oh man, you are a keeper!"  
  
He laughed and scooted down on the bed to lie next to her. She sighed as the sleep came back to her and he closed his eyes, trying to get to sleep. He couldn't help but just want to stay up. He didn't know why he wanted to just be around her, other than the fact that he loved her. He just felt something inside of his that told him to just hold her right now. Eventually he found himself drifting off to sleep and was forced to succumb to sleep and let the morning come and take him away.  
  
He slapped at the alarm the next morning, aware that he was alone in the bed. He sat up quickly and looked around, hoping he hadn't slept in late or anything. He looked at the clock and saw that he wasn't late at all, but needed to get up as soon as possible. He saw Stephanie walking out of the bathroom in her robe, which barely tied around her stomach as she brushed her teeth.  
  
"Oh good, you're up," she mumbled as she went back into the bathroom to spit out the foam in her mouth and then rinse.  
  
"What are you doing up so early?" Chris asked as he went into the bathroom and turned on the shower, "You don't have to get up."  
  
"Yeah, I know that I don't have to get up, but that doesn't mean I don't want to. I just wanted to make sure that you got off ok."  
  
"That's nice of you," he said, stripping down, "Would you mind making coffee for me?"  
  
"Already did," she said, "I was up really early. The baby woke me up with all that moving around in there."  
  
"Baby, stop waking up your Mommy," Chris called out with a laugh as he went into the shower.  
  
"I'll be downstairs!"  
  
Stephanie walked down the hall to Regan's room and opened the door slightly. The youngster was sleeping sprawled out in her bed, her arm hanging over the edge. Stephanie tiptoed quietly into the room and gently put Regan's arm back on the bed and then pulled the stray covers over her small body, not wanting to wake her up. When this was done, she went downstairs and stuck some bread into the toaster so Chris would have some breakfast before he left.  
  
She sat at the table and took out a magazine that she had been reading. She propped her feet on the chair, seeing as how they were swollen most of the day anyways. Chris came down the stairs a little bit later, quickly kissing her in passing as he went to grab the toast and buttered it deftly as he poured a cup of coffee with the other hand.  
  
"Are you sure you're going to be alright today?"  
  
"I'm going to be fine," she answered, not looking up, "You're coming back tomorrow right?"  
  
"Yeah, is anyone spending the night here with you and Regan?"  
  
"No, but we should be alright, I won't do anything endangering anyone. Probably order a pizza or something for dinner, and then hit the sack early and that way the sooner you get home," she said, setting her magazine down on the table, "Does that sound too strenuous to you?"  
  
"No, that sounds fine, you act as if I'm not allowed to even remotely worry about you," he said with disappointment.  
  
"Now you know that's not true," she replied, "We'll miss you while you're gone."  
  
"I'll miss you guys too," he said, "Don't make me feel any worse than I already do."  
  
"Daddy!" Regan ran into the room and over to Chris, throwing her arms around his legs and holding on tightly. Chris laughed and patted her on the head.  
  
"Morning Princess, Daddy has to go soon."  
  
She frowned, "Why?"  
  
"Because I have to go see Grandpa and then I have to go on the show and then I can come home and spend time with you guys."  
  
"I don't like that," she told him.  
  
He laughed, "Princess, its only one day, and then I get to spend a long time with you here."  
  
"I still don't like it."  
  
He kneeled down to her level, "Princess, please be a good girl for Mommy, because she's going to have your little brother or sister soon and we don't want her to have to chase you around so please can you just understand that Daddy has to go for the day?"  
  
"Ok Daddy," she told him, giving him a little pout.  
  
"Aww," he said with a smile and a kiss to her cheek, "Thank you Princess, this means a lot to me, you're such a big girl, you know that right."  
  
She giggled and then ran over to her seat at the table, climbing in with a boost from Chris as she kneeled and looked at Stephanie. Stephanie smiled at her and got up off her chair to kiss Regan's head. She went to the pantry next and grabbed some cereal making it for the little girl, putting the bowl on the table and handing her a spoon.  
  
"Ok my beautiful girls," Chris said as he finished his coffee, "I have to go now, but don't forget that I'm coming home tomorrow, and that I love both of you very much."  
  
"Wow, how long did you rehearse that one for?" Stephanie asked.  
  
"Thought it up in the shower," he joked, "Ok, I'll see you two tomorrow."  
  
"Yes, you will," Stephanie said with a grin, "I love you."  
  
"I love you too," he told her, "And I love you too Regan."  
  
"Byebye Daddy," she told him, cereal falling out of her mouth. Stephanie grabbed a napkin and wiped Regan's mouth as she watched Chris grab a small bag and kiss them both goodbye, even bestowing a kiss to Stephanie's stomach.  
  
Stephanie sat down with her own bowl of cereal and started eating. Her stomach was grumbling and she knew she had to eat something for the baby. She was no sooner eating than the doorbell rang. It was probably Shane or Marissa coming over to check on her. She went to the door and opened it up.  
  
"Well hello Stephanie."  
  
Stephanie took a step back, suddenly feeling an undulating fear creep up her spine and settling in the back of her throat. Trish was wearing a long black jacket, much like the one she wore in the ring, or at least used to wear in the ring. She was leaning against the doorframe, a smug, little sneer on her face.  
  
"Go away," Stephanie said forcefully, closing the door. Unfortunately in her pregnant condition she didn't have as much strength and movement as this moment warranted. Trish pushed the door open with her foot and sent Stephanie staggering back.  
  
"So we finally meet again bitch," Trish said as she stepped into the foyer and looked around, "Nice digs you got around here, I could do so much more with this than you have. But what can I expect, trash begets trash."  
  
"The only trash around here is you," Stephanie spat out, "Now get the hell out of my house."  
  
"No, I don't think I'm going to do that," Trish told her, "Not after what you did to me. Why couldn't you just stay dead?"  
  
"Because I wasn't dead," Stephanie said, "It doesn't mess with me, neither can you. You don't scare me Trish."  
  
"Good, wouldn't want that, not this soon anyways," Trish said, "See, I thought you were dead and I was going to use that to my advantage. Of course you just couldn't, could you? You didn't even have your fucking memory back and he still wanted you! He was supposed to want ME! I was supposed to marry him and get all of his money! But NO, you had to fucking come back, not even remembering shit and he couldn't care less! I spent the last couple of years trying to get him to want me, but it was always YOU! What the fuck do you have that I don't, huh Stephanie, tell me!"  
  
"Class, intelligence, naturally good looks, a job, the list really goes on and on Trish," Stephanie said, "Oh, and I have Chris too, how's that for the kicker?"  
  
"I should've slammed your head harder against the ground when I had the chance."  
  
"What is your fucking problem Trish, why are you so intent on ruining my life?"  
  
"Because you have everything I want! Don't you get that," Trish screamed, her eyes flashing almost insanely. Stephanie was trying to remain calm, but she'd be lying if she said she wasn't a little bit frightened right now. Trish was very unstable and not afraid to be violent.  
  
"That's not my fault."  
  
"Oh, but it is," Trish said, "Everything bad that has happened to me has been your fault. I don't think that's fair, do you think that's fair Stephanie?"  
  
"Trish, just get out of my house before I call the police."  
  
"I doubt you'll be doing that."  
  
Stephanie turned to walk over to the telephone in the living room, but Trish's leg cut off her path. She glared at Trish who just gave her a smile and a raised eyebrow. Stephanie couldn't just run, not with the ton of extra weight she was carrying around. Of all the times to be pregnant, she wished now that she had already had the baby so she could just run like a bat out of hell for the phone.  
  
"Trish, I don't know why you're here, but just leave, you're not going to get anywhere by coming here. Even if you did want your job back, I couldn't get it for you, that has to go through different channels."  
  
"That's not what I want," Trish told her, "My job, I can live without it, I'm a reasonable woman, I know when to save my money and when to spend it. See, what I want, what I really, REALLY want...well...I want to see you dead."  
  
Stephanie stared at her and just shook her head in disgust. This display was doubly pathetic. Trish had gotten what was coming to her and she couldn't help that the ditz had fallen for everything that they had pulled on her. The little bitch just had what was coming to her, plain and simple.  
  
"I want to see your lifeless body fall to the ground. Where you should've been years ago. I thought I buried you, but I see that its going to take a little more than that to get you in a pine box. I want to dance on your grave Stephanie, that's what I really, really want."  
  
"Well too bad you can't do anything of the sort."  
  
Trish just smiled and reached into her jacket. Stephanie watched her every move and then saw a gleam that she didn't want to see at all. Trish pulled out the gun and Stephanie's eyes widened. Now she was officially scared and not afraid to show it as she placed her hands against the wall.  
  
"Now don't be scared," Trish said as she traced the barrel of the gun, "You shouldn't be so scared, what do you think I'm going to do?"  
  
"Trish, don't you even dare," Stephanie said, her voice wavering as she kept her eyes constantly on Trish's hand with the gun in it, "You don't know what kind of trouble you'd be in if you were to do anything to me."  
  
"I'd be gone before anyone found you," Trish said as if it were obvious, "But don't worry Stephanie, I don't plan on killing you."  
  
"Then what do you plan on doing?"  
  
"You know, there's a Beatles song called 'Happiness is a Warm Gun,' and you know, I never believed that until now. And this gun is cold, now how can I change that?"  
  
"Trish, what the hell are you planning on doing?"  
  
"Well, you know, its funny, because I wanted to kill you, but then I thought, what would be even better than killing you, and I had an epiphany, poof, just like that," she said, waving the gun in the air, causing Stephanie to shiver in fright, "Making you hurt forever."  
  
"What?"  
  
Trish took her gunned hand and pointed it straight at Stephanie's head. Stephanie took a deep breath, expecting it all to be over within seconds. She gave up a silent prayer for Chris and Regan, who was probably still in the kitchen trying to shovel cereal in her mouth, or hopefully had run back upstairs or into the playroom, anywhere where she could be safe. She thanked God that she had been able to have a good life up until now and just hoped that somehow they could deliver her baby so they could live.  
  
Then Trish moved the gun and Stephanie found that she was no longer staring at the barrel of a gun. Trish had moved it lower and now it was pressing against her swollen stomach. Stephanie gasped and shook her head in denial, Trish wouldn't, she couldn't do that, not in a million years.  
  
"Hey Steph, have you heard your baby's heartbeat yet?"  
  
"Trish, no," Stephanie begged, it was downright begging, shameless and full of desperation.  
  
"Cause I'm hoping you have, because that would make this that much sweeter, you know, because it would be gone," Trish said, and Stephanie saw the full glint of her insanity in Trish's eyes.  
  
"Trish, please, I'm begging you, please don't hurt my baby, I swear to God, you can have your job back, or money, however much you want, 100 million, 500 million, just please, PLEASE don't hurt my child," Stephanie was crying now, but she didn't care, as long as Trish didn't get to her.  
  
"Oh Stephanie, this really is pathetic."  
  
"Mama," Regan asked quietly as she walked in the foyer, still clad in her footy pajamas.  
  
"Regan go back to your room and lock the door," Stephanie said insistently.  
  
"No, no, no," Trish said, still having the gun pointed at Stephanie's stomach, "Hello there Regan, how are you?"  
  
"You're the mean lady who tried to hurt Mama," Regan said accusingly.  
  
"Aww, how sweet," Trish said, "Such a cute little girl. I would've been a good new Mommy for you."  
  
"I love Mama," Regan said as she stood there. Stephanie wanted to rush over to her, but one false move and...she didn't even want to think about it.  
  
"Wow Stephanie, she's adorable," Trish said, then moved the gun to face Regan, "Now would she be the better one to go?"  
  
"Trish, for the love of God, please just leave. You can't hurt my babies, I swear, just please, I don't know what to do, just leave!"  
  
"This is a dilemma, Regan or this little one, because I really don't want to kill you Stephanie."  
  
"What kind of monster are you?" Stephanie sobbed, "Their innocent children!"  
  
"YOUR innocent children," Trish said, "Your being the key word in all of this."  
  
"Regan, run upstairs alright, just go upstairs!" Stephanie screamed.  
  
Regan, startled, ran out of the room before Trish could do anything. Trish shook her head and turned angry eyes to Stephanie. Trish slapped her across the face, Stephanie's head forced to the side from the impact. Stephanie took it and then faced her again. Trish grabbed Stephanie by the hair and slammed her head back. Stephanie took it because better her getting the shit kicked out of her than Trish doing something to her children. Stephanie knew better than to struggle or try for the gun, because it could go off and hit her.  
  
"You really shouldn't have done that," Trish said, "Letting your little girl run away, bad idea Steph, because you just sealed the fate of your other child."  
  
"You won't hurt my baby, over my dead body."  
  
"I guess that can be arranged."  
  
Trish pointed the gun at her again. 


	23. Chapter 23

Stephanie found herself staring down the barrel of a gun. Well, this was a situation she never thought she'd be in. She looked at Trish sadly, her eyes having dried to her face in dry, little tracts. She closed her eyes and thought of Chris. She wondered where he was right now, probably still on his way to the airport, thinking that when he was through with tonight he'd come home to his wife and kids. She hoped that he'd be alright when he found out she was gone. She knew he had taken it hard when she had "died" before; she could only imagine how he would take it this time.  
  
She was ready now, ready to go She tried to think good thoughts; she didn't want to die with angry thoughts or thoughts of revenge on Trish, or even with a fear. Images flashed through her mind, and she did have a good life for the most part. She couldn't complain, not really. She just wished it wasn't ending, not without her getting to say goodbye.  
  
"DROP THE GUN!"  
  
Stephanie's eyes flew open and she saw an arsenal of police standing just inside the door. She could see numerous police cars out front in her driveway. Trish, startle momentarily flipped around and saw that she was surrounded. In her surprised state, she took no notice of the gun in her hand, seeing at least ten pointed back at her.  
  
"We said drop the gun!"  
  
Trish dropped the gun and as soon as she did, the police were all over her. One of them cuffed her, none to kindly either as another picked up the gun carefully and unloaded it. Stephanie was shaking now, both from relief and fright. One of the police officers came over to her to ask her a question, but she couldn't hear it as she kept shaking.  
  
"Stephanie is it?"  
  
She turned to him, "Y–Yes, that's right."  
  
"Are you alright? Did she hurt you?"  
  
"Um...she...she slapped me and hit my head against the wall," Stephanie answered, getting a little more grounded, "Um, and she wanted to shoot me and my baby."  
  
"Its alright Stephanie, you're fine now, we're going to take her down to the station and we'll make sure that she's locked up."  
  
"Thank you," she said gratefully, "I don't...thank you."  
  
"Its not a problem," he said, "We're just glad we got here in time."  
  
Stephanie only realized right now that she hadn't called the police. She was eternally grateful that she was still alive and that she and her kids were going to be fine, but she hadn't called the police. Had Chris come back or something? She looked around, but didn't see him anywhere and she knew that if he had called that he would be all over her making sure that she was ok. So what the hell had happened?  
  
"Um...my daughter, she's in the house somewhere," Stephanie said absently, starting to wander around, "I don't know where she went, I told her to get out."  
  
"She's with some of the other police officers," the man pointed out as Stephanie looked over to see Regan beaming at one of them, "She's a very smart little girl."  
  
"Huh?" How did this man know that if he hadn't even talked to her.  
  
"She's the one who called us," he explained.  
  
Stephanie blinked a couple of times in shock, her jaw dropping a tiny bit, "What do you mean?"  
  
"Well, the emergency services received a call about fifteen minutes ago from your daughter saying that there was a bad woman trying to hurt her mommy. Well, when someone calls into the service, their address automatically comes up on the screen, so they sent us over here, just in time I think."  
  
"So my little girl...she saved me," Stephanie said.  
  
"Yeah, you're one lucky woman."  
  
"I know," Stephanie whispered.  
  
"Would you like us to call your husband?"  
  
"Um...ok, the number, its, um, God, I can't think right now," Stephanie said, still in a daze, "Its on the refrigerator."  
  
"Its fine, we'll get it for you and call him."  
  
"Thank you."  
  
Stephanie looked at her little girl, who was standing there with a smile on her face. Stephanie almost couldn't believe that Regan had saved her. She walked over to where Regan was still standing and as Regan saw Stephanie, she ran over to her mother and hugged her legs tightly. Stephanie kneeled down slightly to take Regan more firmly in her arms.  
  
"Thank you baby girl," Stephanie whispered, holding her, "Thank you so much."  
  
"The man said he proud of me," Regan said as she hugged Stephanie back.  
  
"I'm SO proud of you," Stephanie said, tears streaming down her face again, but these of happiness, "You are the best little girl in the world, and I'm going to get you a big bowl of ice cream right now."  
  
"Really!" Regan's eyes lit up like fireworks on the Fourth of July.  
  
"Yes, but first, how did you know to call the police?"  
  
"Daddy showed me," Regan said with a smile, "He told me if I ever in twouble that I should dial 911, and then he showed me on the tewephone. And I know that lady was mean, so I call."  
  
"Remind me to give Daddy a big bowl of ice cream too."  
  
"Okay!"  
  
Chris was driving happily down the highway, just taking the turn off for the airport. There had been some sort of traffic jam that had slowed him up for a little while. He would still make his flight though so he hadn't worried. He pulled into the parking garage when his cell phone rang. He swore, finding a spot, but the phone kept ringing. He decided to park and then get the phone. He pulled into the spot and then grabbed his phone grumbling at whoever it was for delaying him even more.  
  
"What is it?"  
  
"Mr. Jericho," came an official sounding voice.  
  
"Yeah, this is him."  
  
"This is Officer Phillips from the Greenwich Police Department."  
  
Chris froze in his car but his heart was only getting started as it sped faster than he had on the freeway, "What's wrong? Did something happen? My wife and kids..."  
  
"There was an incident that took place in your house--"  
  
"Is my family ok?" Chris was frantic now.  
  
"They're both fine, a little shaken up, but they're both going to be fine."  
  
Chris's heart rate was returning to normal, "What happened?"  
  
"We got a call from your daughter saying that her mother was in trouble so we sent out some of the cruisers in the area and caught your wife being held at gunpoint by a Miss Trish Stratus."  
  
Trish! Chris pulled out of the parking spot quickly and started the drive back home. He should've known that bitch would have something to do with this. His relief at his family being fine was tempered with an anger for Trish and her seedy tricks. This one took the cake. He didn't allow himself to even conjure up an image of Stephanie being held at gunpoint. There was only so many images of Stephanie in danger he could handle, and he had already had a lifetime's worth of them.  
  
"Thank you for getting there in time," Chris told the man, "And you're sure they're both going to be ok."  
  
"Yes, would you like to talk to your wife?"  
  
"I would like that very much thanks."  
  
Chris could hear a lot of shuffling going on and it seemed the phone was getting passed from person to person. He was getting anxious to hear Stephanie's voice. Nothing could reassure him of her safety more than hearing her distinctly unique voice speaking to him from the other line. He drove onto the freeway, trying not to speed. The last thing he needed was a ticket that would delay him even more.  
  
"Chris," came her shaky voice.  
  
"Oh Stephanie, I'm so sorry I wasn't there."  
  
"Are you coming home?"  
  
"Of course, your dad will just have to do without me, there's no way I'm not going to be there for you. Baby, what happened?"  
  
"I answered the door, I thought it was Shane," she said, then he could hear her start to cry.  
  
"Steph, its ok, you don't have to tell me right now," Chris said gently.  
  
"No, I'm fine. She...she threatened me, told me I ruined her life. She said...she....she said that she didn't want to kill me, but she wanted to hurt me forever and she...she put a gun to my stomach and said she was going to kill our baby," Stephanie explained, her tears clogging her throat so her voice was no more than a croak.  
  
Chris bit his lip and took a deep breath, "Then what happened?"  
  
"Regan came in and then Trish said she'd shoot Regan too and... I told her to run away and she did and then Trish slapped me and hit my head against the wall, but I took it because Chris, I couldn't let her hurt our babies, I just couldn't!"  
  
"I know baby, I know, you're so brave."  
  
"Then she said she would kill me, and I thought I was going to die Chris. I thought about you and how much you would miss me, and I didn't want to leave you Chris, I didn't!"  
  
"You're not leaving me baby," he said soothingly, "So the guy told me that Regan--"  
  
"She called the police Chris! Our little girl, who's barely four years old called the police! I mean, she told them and everything, I couldn't believe it. The cops showed up when Trish was pointing the gun at my head and I thought you had come home, but Regan had run to the phone to call the police."  
  
"Yeah, I told her how to call for help if someone needed it."  
  
"God bless you! She's my new hero," Stephanie said, "Do you want to talk to her?"  
  
"Yeah, can I?"  
  
"Of course," Stephanie said, then handed the phone to the little girl.  
  
"Daddy, Mama's letting me eat ice cream!"  
  
"Well from what I hear you're a brave hero."  
  
"For eating ice cream?" she asked, somewhat confused by what her father was saying.  
  
"No, for calling the police when Mama was in trouble."  
  
"You told me to do that in case of twouble," she said, "Mama was in twouble."  
  
"Yeah, I know," Chris said seriously, "And you did the absolute best thing you could possibly do and when I get back home, I'm going to give you a big kiss and a hug."  
  
She giggled and handed the phone back to Stephanie, "Chris, we're going to go, the officers need to ask a few more questions, you'll be home soon right?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm on my way there as we speak."  
  
"I love you," Stephanie whispered, her voice full of raw emotion as if the words were too powerful for her to say.  
  
"I love you too," he said back, his voice full of emotion as well, "God, I love you."  
  
"We'll talk later, see you soon."  
  
"Bye baby."  
  
Chris hung up the phone reluctantly. It was as if not talking to her would make her disappear. But he was still worried, he needed to make sure that she was going to be alright. He had to see it with his own eyes to make sure that she was ok, because he wasn't trusting the images running through his mind right now. He finally got off the freeway only to meet a stop light getting off of it. He tapped his fingers impatiently as he waited for it to turn green.  
  
He finally arrived home to see police officers milling about talking to one another. He saw one cop car with a familiar blonde sitting huffily in the back. Chris parked his car and attempted to walk to his house, but was stopped by one of the officers. He explained to them who he was, actually having to get out his wallet and show the officer that he was indeed the owner of the house, and only then was he allowed to walk past.  
  
He walked up to the police car and spoke with the police officer about being able to talk to Trish. The guy gave in and helped get Trish out of the car, holding her by the handcuffs as she was led her over roughly. They stopped her in front of Chris and she scowled at him.  
  
"You bitch," Chris said.  
  
"I'm not allowed to say anything," Trish said, "You know, cause anything I say can and will be used against me. But if you want to talk, go right ahead, I'll just jot it down mentally to use against you in court."  
  
"I can't believe that you would try to hurt two innocent children."  
  
She shrugged, "Sometimes you have to go through people to get to people, fact of life Chris. Only the strong survive."  
  
"Well, look at you now."  
  
"Yeah, look at me. But I'm going to get out Chris, I'm going to get out and you can't stop me from doing anything I want to do. That's just how it works out."  
  
"Think that Trish, I REALLY hope you think that."  
  
"I will, tell Stephanie and Regan that I'll be seeing them," Trish said, smiling cruelly, "Soon hopefully."  
  
Chris resisted the urge to punch her as she was led away by the police officer. Another one came up and asked him to positively identify Trish, which he did gladly. He walked into the house and looked around. He wondered where Stephanie and Regan could be. He heard Regan talking from the kitchen and went in there, and he saw Regan, but Stephanie was nowhere to be found.  
  
"Daddy!"  
  
"Hey there Princess," Chris said, kneeling down to let her run over and hug him. He hugged her back, tighter than tight, "I'm so proud of you Princess."  
  
"Thanks Daddy," she said, "Mama said I brave."  
  
"You're very brave," he agreed, "And I love you so much and I'm so glad that you're alright, because I would be very sad if anything happened to you."  
  
"Me too Daddy."  
  
"Where's Mommy?" Chris asked, looking around.  
  
"They took her away," Regan said, "She had an owwie and the man said she had to go away."  
  
"An owwie?" His heartbeat had JUST returned to normal and now it was starting to race again, at an unnatural pace.  
  
"Uh huh, she hurt."  
  
"How Regan?" Chris said, holding her by the shoulders.  
  
"I dunno Daddy."  
  
Chris stood up and went over to one of the officers, hoping to get a coherent answer.  
  
"Excuse me," Chris said, walking up to a police officer, "I wanted to know where my wife, Stephanie, was, and I was hoping you could tell me."  
  
"Nobody told you," the guy said, "I thought someone had called you. That's the last time I leave the task to someone else."  
  
"So, she's not here?" Chris's breathing was stunted and he was about to hyperventilate.  
  
"No, she got taken away in the ambulance. Your daughter stayed here per your wife's request. She said that you would take care of her."  
  
Chris was frantic when he asked, "Why did she have to go to the hospital? I thought you said my wife was unhurt, you said that she was fine!"  
  
"Sir, she is...well for the most part."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"She went into labor." 


	24. Chapter 24

Chris almost had a heart attack at the words that the officer had said. Stephanie had gone into labor! Could this day get any more hectic than it already was? He needed to go see Stephanie right now and make sure that she and the baby were going to be alright. He picked up Regan and she looked at him strangely.  
  
"Daddy, I not done with my ice cream," she told him, pointing towards the bowl still sitting on the table.  
  
"I know Princess, but Daddy needs to go see Mommy soon and so you need to come with me," he explained.  
  
"Cause Mama got an owwie?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Ok," she pouted, but let Chris carry her nonetheless.  
  
Once Chris got things squared away with the officers, he brought Regan to his car and strapped her into her carseat in the back. He pulled out of the driveway, and had to refrain from speeding, considering there was still about fifty cops lingering around, and the last thing he needed was a speeding ticket at the moment.  
  
"Princess, Daddy is going to drop you off at Grandma's alright, because I don't think you're allowed at the hospital," Chris said to Regan.  
  
"Ok Daddy," she said as she played with the dolls that had been on the seat next to her, "I like going to Gramma's."  
  
"Good," he said, "And then hopefully in a few hours you can meet your new brother or sister."  
  
"A baby like Sam right Daddy?"  
  
"Yeah, a really small baby," he said as he drove.  
  
He tapped his fingers impatiently at every red light from there to Vince and Linda's house. Every second he wasn't with Stephanie was a second that he didn't know what the hell was going on. He knew that the baby would probably be alright, she was due in twelve days anyways, so it was only about two weeks early. But still, he wanted to be there for Stephanie.  
  
He eventually got himself and Regan to Vince and Linda's in one piece and hopped out of the car the second he turned it off. Opening the back door and getting Regan out of her seat was also a rush job and then he found himself jogging to the door with Regan in his arms. She giggled because her daddy was being silly and he kissed her nose as he rang the doorbell.  
  
"You're silly Daddy."  
  
"Anything to make my Princess laugh," he told her, "I hope your grandma is here, maybe I should've called huh?"  
  
"Uh huh."  
  
Linda answered the door just then, "Chris, Regan, this is quite a surprise, what are you two doing here?"  
  
"Hey Linda, I was wondering if you could watch Regan for a while, maybe overnight depending," Chris said hurriedly.  
  
"What's wrong?" Linda asked, immediately picking up on Chris's anxiousness.  
  
"Stephanie went into labor."  
  
"Oh my God, and you're still here, where is she? Is she in the car," Linda said, taking Regan from his arms.  
  
"She was taken in an ambulance, it's a really, really long story Linda, and I'll be sure to fill you in on the details, but I really want to get to Stephanie right now because she's all alone and I want to be with her and the baby."  
  
"Oh, of course," Linda said, "Regan can stay with us as long as you need her to stay here."  
  
"Thanks so much," he said, leaning over to kiss Regan on the cheek, "Be a good girl."  
  
"Bye Daddy," Regan waved.  
  
Chris waved briefly before rushing back to his car. He hopped in quickly, barely getting his seatbelt on before starting the car. Vince and Linda lived on the outskirts of town so he had to drive about twenty minutes to the hospital. The ride was not fast enough for him, and he gripped the steering wheel tightly. He reached the hospital in record time and after parking haphazardly in the parking lot he ran inside.  
  
"Hi, I'm looking for my wife, she was brought in, she's in labor," he said, his breath coming in gasps as he had run in a dead heat to the hospital.  
  
"What's her name?" the nurse asked.  
  
"Jericho, Stephanie," he said, tapping his fingers against the counter.  
  
"Um, I don't see anyone on our list under that name," the nurse responded.  
  
"She was probably just checked in, they took her by ambulance."  
  
"Well, usually our database is up-to-the-minute, but if she's in labor, maybe they didn't get her name in."  
  
"Also, check under McMahon, Stephanie, she could be here under that name too," he said, wondering if this could go any slower. Every second that he was here, was one second that he wasn't with Stephanie.  
  
"I'm sorry sir, there's no one under that name, would you like me to call up the maternity ward and asked if she's up there."  
  
"Yes, please."  
  
He waited while the nurse called up the maternity ward. He leaned against the counter impatiently. He didn't think this day could get any worse if he tried. Then he remembered that he hadn't called Vince and told him that he wasn't going to be there tonight. Vince would understand, he had important things to take care of.  
  
"Sir, there was no woman by that name admitted today."  
  
"What! What do you mean? She was taken in an ambulance, and she was taken to the hospital!"  
  
"Sir, we have no record of her here."  
  
"What the fuck is going on," Chris muttered as he looked around frantically.  
  
Stephanie lay in the bed impatiently. These stupid ice chips weren't helping any, and she was so uncomfortable in this damn bed. The doctors said she was progressing nicely, but that didn't help the shooting pain she had every couple of minutes. She wanted to pelt the ice chips at the nurses for being so damn incompetent. But above everything else, she wanted Chris.  
  
"Stephanie, let's check to see how you're doing," her doctor said as she walked over to her.  
  
"Yeah, yeah, fine," she muttered, "Go check and say I'm doing wonderfully."  
  
"Well you are," the doctor answered, patting her on the leg, "You're about nine centimeters, so you only have a little bit more to go and then this will be all over."  
  
"Finally," she said, "I feel like I'm sitting on a crate of dynamite that's about ready to explode."  
  
"It won't be as hard this time as it was the first time."  
  
"I don't think it'll ever be a walk in the park," Stephanie told her. She felt another contraction hitting her and she groaned in pain as the doctor calmly went to the machine monitoring her stomach to see how long this would be.  
  
"Ok Stephanie, it's almost over, just breathe."  
  
"Easy for you to say, you're not the one lying here with something trying to push its way out of your body," Stephanie grunted as she fell back against the pillows.  
  
"You're so close, be patient. If you need anything, buzz one of the nurses."  
  
"Fine," Stephanie said as she watched the doctor walk out of the room, "I want my fucking husband, can someone get that for me?" She grabbed the telephone off the stand next to her and sat it on her legs. Picking up the receiver she dialed Chris's cell phone number. She got a busy signal, and scowled. "Chris, where the hell are you?"  
  
"Vince, I can't make it tonight."  
  
"What? Why? We were counting on you to do an injury scene," Vince said to his son-in-law.  
  
"Stephanie's in labor," Chris answered, "And I want to be with her."  
  
"She is! Well then, of course, take the night off, take the week off, we'll figure something out. How is she?"  
  
Chris didn't want to tell him he didn't exactly know where Stephanie was, so he lied, "She's doing great, I'll tell her that I talked to you."  
  
"Congratulations to you both. I can't wait to see my new grandchild."  
  
"Well, we can't wait either, we'll talk to you later Vince," Chris said, "I want to get to Stephanie."  
  
"Of course, good luck."  
  
"Thanks, bye."  
  
Chris hung up the phone and paced the room again. Where could Stephanie be? This was the closest hospital there was, and she should be here. Could they have encountered traffic or something? He didn't want to think anything worse had happened, that wasn't possible, if one thing had been going well, it had been the pregnancy, but that could've go awry as well.  
  
Stephanie dialed her mother's house, waiting for an answer. "Hello?"  
  
"Mom, it's Stephanie."  
  
"Oh Stephanie, where are you? How are you?"  
  
"I'm at Stamford General, and I'm about to give birth, so I'm not doing too well physically," Stephanie said miserably, "And I'm all alone Mommy and I can't reach Chris."  
  
"He's not there, he left here about forty-five minutes ago," Linda said.  
  
"He did, why?"  
  
"To drop off Regan, she's here with me sweetie, I'm sure Chris is on his way."  
  
"Mommy," Stephanie started then was hit with another contraction, "Oww, Mommy, call...oww...him, please, oh man, I need the doctor!"  
  
Stephanie hung up the phone as the doctor came into the room to check on her. She laid back against the bed, closing her eyes, wondering where the hell her husband could be. If he had left her parents about forty-five minutes ago, he should've been here already. She didn't think there would be traffic, it was hitting the middle of the day, when there was less traffic.  
  
"Stephanie, you're ready."  
  
"No, I'm not," she groaned, "My husband isn't here, and I need my husband here, so you better just wait until I'm damn ready."  
  
"I don't think that's possible Stephanie, we can't tell it to stay in."  
  
"You obviously don't know my family. If this is my kid, then when I say they'll stay in, they will!"  
  
"Do you want to be in pain?"  
  
"Well no, but I don't think you and your staff or any doctor has ever found the cure for the pain of labor, not completely, so unless you have found that cure, I think either way, I'm going to be in pain!"  
  
"Ok, calm down Stephanie."  
  
"Calm down! I am all alone, about to give birth here, I've already had a really, really shitty day."  
  
"It'll get better once we get this baby out," the doctor pointed out.  
  
"Oh, is that so? Well maybe so, but you want to hear what happened to me today?" The doctor opened her mouth to speak, but Stephanie kept on ranting, "I was held at gunpoint, I had my little girl threatened and almost shot, I stared down the barrel of a gun, I was slapped across the face, I had my head hit against a wall, and then I go into labor, now if that doesn't warrant me to have to not calm down, I don't know what the hell will!"  
  
"Ok, Steph, that's a very, very bad day."  
  
"No shit!"  
  
"But if you don't start pushing, then you are putting both you and your child in danger, and I'm thinking that will send your day even lower than it is."  
  
"Ok, fine, but can someone call my husband and tell him I'm waiting, I told one of the nurses the number."  
  
"We'll have someone call," the doctor said, "I'll be right back."  
  
Chris was arguing with one of the personnel people at the hospital. He couldn't figure out where the hell his wife was, and now he was getting frustrated. His cell phone rang and he picked it up angrily, not in the mood to talk to anyone right now.  
  
"Chris, where are you?"  
  
"Linda?"  
  
"Yes, Stephanie is wondering where you are."  
  
"Wait, you know where Steph is? How do you know where she is and I don't?"  
  
"She couldn't reach you."  
  
"Damn it, I was on the phone with Vince, where is she? I'm at the Greenwich hospital."  
  
"She's in Stamford General Chris, not in Greenwich," Linda said, alarmed.  
  
"What! Shit, Linda, I have to go, I'll see you later."  
  
Chris raced out of the hospital and back down to his car, his tires screeching as he pulled out of the space. He drove as fast as he could to Stamford. He couldn't believe they had taken her to another hospital. Why had they taken her to a farther hospital? He was never going to understand the emergency people, it was so simple, take the person to the closest hospital. It made sense to him, why not to those people.  
  
He got to Stamford in one piece and drove to where he thought the hospital was located. After getting lost once and having to stop at a gas station for directions, he found the hospital at last. Fighting off a feeling of déjà vu, he ran into the hospital. The exception this time was he was actually told the room where his wife was staying so there was none of that confusion.  
  
She was on the third floor and he contemplated taking the stairs or the elevator. The elevator was slow, but if he ran up the steps, he'd get tired. Fuck it, he ran up the stairs, knowing he would get there faster and not have to wait for the damn elevator. He pushed the doors open to the floor and raced down the hallway, causing the nurse's heads to turn and look at him. He saw Stephanie's door a few feet ahead and raced to it.  
  
"I'm here! Ok, Steph, breathe, you're going to do great, you are doing great," he said as he rushed into the room blindly.  
  
"Shh Chris," Stephanie said quietly.  
  
He froze in the doorway, staring at Stephanie. She was smiling at him sweetly and holding a little bundle in her arms. Chris couldn't move; he just stared at them. Stephanie held the baby with one arm and waved him over. Hesitantly, Chris stepped over to look at them.  
  
"I missed it," Chris said sadly.  
  
"Well, there was only so long I could keep it in," she told him softly, "It's ok, you didn't miss much, except me pelting the nurses with the ice chips."  
  
"Like last time," he smiled, "I can't believe I missed it."  
  
"Not by much, he was just born seven minutes ago."  
  
"That's seven minutes of his life I've missed...wait, it's a he, he's a he, it's a boy," Chris said happily.  
  
"Yeah, say hello to Bryant Vincent Jericho," Stephanie smiled, looking up at her husband, "I took the liberty of choosing a middle name, I thought it would be appropriate. Not to mention my father would probably kill us if we didn't have his name in there somewhere."  
  
Chris sat down on the bed, "Wow, I have a son."  
  
"You have a son," she echoed.  
  
"We have a little boy, we have a baby, I never thought...I never thought I'd get a son, I mean, I never thought I'd have more kids, I never...well, you were gone and I never thought that," he said, his words jumbling together and failing him altogether.  
  
"Well, you were wrong obviously," she giggled, "Do you want to hold him?"  
  
"Hell yeah," Chris said. Stephanie handed him over and Chris held him securely in his arms, "Geez, how much does he weigh?"  
  
"Nine pounds, six ounces," Stephanie said, "He's a big boy."  
  
"I'll say," Chris said, staring down at his son, "Wow, this is...this brings back memories like you wouldn't believe doesn't it?"  
  
She laid her head on his shoulder, "It does...ones I can remember clearly."  
  
"Good," he said, kissing her head, "Hey there Bry, I'm your dad, you can call me Daddy or Dad, or whatever you want. Let me tell you something though. Your mom is an incredible lady, and we are both so lucky that we have her with us."  
  
Stephanie rolled her eyes, "Flattery will get you nowhere."  
  
"I'm an idiot, I was at the wrong hospital," he told her, as she leaned her head on his shoulder.  
  
"You didn't know," she said with a slight yawn.  
  
"And I'm a bigger idiot that I didn't ask how you were," he said, tearing his eyes away from his son to look at his wife, "How are you?"  
  
"Well, I just had a baby, so I'm a little bit sore," she answered.  
  
"No, I mean, I know that, but earlier..."  
  
She closed her eyes, "I'm fine. Now. I'm fine."  
  
He pulled away a little and saw a bruise forming on her cheek. He bit his lip and shifted the baby to one arm to touch the bruise. She winced a little and he drew his hand back a bit. She gave him a small smile and held his hand.  
  
"It's just a bruise."  
  
"I would've never gotten over--"  
  
"It's just a bruise," she repeated, rubbing his hand, "Nothing more."  
  
"I should've been there...here, I just...I didn't take care of any of you. I failed you. I told you that nobody would hurt you and look at what happened."  
  
"He's cute isn't he?" Stephanie said, completely ignoring what Chris had said, "He has your eyes, if he would just open them, but he's just as sleepy as I am."  
  
"Steph..."  
  
"They said that he was perfectly healthy. They were surprised by how big he was considering that he's early. But they said everything was normal, so they could've miscalculated my due date a little bit. If I had carried him to term, he would've been over ten pounds."  
  
"Wow," he said, just going with what Stephanie was doing. There was nobody to blame in this situation and it was futile to try and think about it anymore. What happened, happened, but they were all safe and the only thing that either of them cared about was being with each other. Stephanie pressed her hand to his cheek and turned him so they were looking into each other's eyes. She opened her mouth to speak, then closed it again, weighing her words.  
  
"Bruises fade, pain is only what you let yourself feel. Whatever happened today, earlier, will fade into oblivion, leaving only the good things. Just like the memory of me dying, though I didn't, will fade in front of you, until you regard it as just something that happened. Because I'm here, right here, and today, it'll fade from memory, because we have a new baby, so forget it Chris...let it go."  
  
It was time to let it go. 


	25. Chapter 25

Stephanie fell asleep soon after he got there. She was breathing softly, her hair still matted to her forehead. They had taken Bryant to the nursery and he was just holding her hand right now, letting her rest. Even in sleep she held onto his hand pretty tightly and he was just content to sit there next to her. He looked at the bruises on her face and closed his eyes, praying to God to give him strength to get through this, to forget.

"Mr. Jericho, it's time for your son's feeding, did you want to feed him his bottle?" a nurse said to him, one arm holding his son and the other holding the bottle of formula.

"Yeah, I'd like that," Chris said with a smile.

The nurse came over and carefully handed Bryant over to him. Chris took him into his arms, supporting his head. He really was a heavy little boy, it was almost good for Stephanie to have him early since he was so big. As soon as he had situated his son in his arms, the nurse handed him his bottle.

"Do you know how to feed him?"

"Yeah, he's my second child actually," Chris explained, "This isn't new territory for me."

"Oh, well, I'll come back in about a half an hour," the nurse said kindly.

"Thanks."

The room went silent again as Chris looked down at his son. He really did have his eyes. The aspirations he had for him at the moment were probably too much for him to ever fulfill, but he couldn't help thinking them. He brought the bottle up to his lips and he started drinking hungrily.

"Hey man, nice to meet you," Chris said, "I already told you I'm your dad, but did you know you have a sister as well?"

"She's great, you'll love her, she's been waiting for you to come along for a while."

His son looked up at him as he drank and Chris smiled. Having him here didn't erase the events that occurred prior to his birth, but they somehow made it easier for him to bear. If he didn't have to think about what had transpired, and instead focused his attention on the fact his son had been born, it was less difficult to cope with.

"You are one lucky kid, you know that, with the mom you got. She's amazing, and she's all ours, so we're both so lucky. We almost didn't get her back, but God seems to like us Bry, that's the only explanation I can think of for it."

"Daddy..."

Chris looked up to the door to see Regan, holding onto Linda's hand. Chris smiled up at Linda and then at Regan. She looked a little nervous to be there and she was clinging onto Linda's hand and pressed against her side. Chris waved her over and she looked up at Linda, who urged her to go over.

"Come here Princess," Chris said quietly, "You wanna meet your baby brother."

"Yeah," Regan said timidly, but still didn't make any motion to move. She looked over at Stephanie, who did look a little worse for the wear, and her eyes grew wide. "Mama hurt!"

Chris smiled, "She's ok baby, she's just sleeping because she's tired."

"Oh."

"Come over here," he prodded.

Regan took a few small steps towards him and with Linda's urging she walked all the way over and stood next to Chris. She put her hands on the arms of the chair and tried to stand on her tiptoes to see through the blanket that was covering her brother's face. Chris brought him down a little so Regan could see him.

"Say hi to Bryant."

"Hi," Regan said, giving a wave, "I'm Regan."

The baby looked at her and snuffled a little, reaching his arms out, "He's saying hi to you."

"He's little Daddy, littler than Sam."

"I know, he's a lot more fragile too."

"Then be careful with him."

Chris laughed, "I will, I wouldn't want Mommy kicking my butt."

Regan laughed, "Gramma, look at the baby."

Linda came over as well to look at him, "So this is my grandson."

"He is, you want to hold him?"

"Is that ok?" Linda asked, "I mean, you probably haven't gotten to hold him that long."

"It's fine," Chris answered, handing Bryant to Linda carefully.

Chris watched as Linda looked on proudly to her new grandson, the first grandson of the McMahon family. Regan went to Chris and tried to climb in his lap before he picked her up and sat her down on his lap. She snuggled into his chest and he kissed her head. He could've lost her too, he realized as she sat there. Stephanie had told him that Trish had threatened to shoot Regan as well, Trish would go so far as to kill an innocent child to prove a point. Chris held his daughter a little tighter. She had been the only light in his life for so long

"Chris, why does Stephanie have a bruise on her face?" Linda asked as she had been studying her daughter's face.

"It's a long story Linda," Chris said, "Trish struck again."

Linda gave him a look of incredulity, "She WHAT?"

"Apparently she came to the house after I had left and she held Stephanie at gunpoint."

Linda sat down heavily in the nearest chair and simply stared at Chris. She almost didn't want to believe the words that had come out of Chris's mouth. They were too far-fetched, too out there, but worst of all, they were too frightening to comprehend. Thinking of your child, your flesh and blood being on the chopping block like that. Linda's face turned ashen and she turned a sickly pale.

"At gunpoint?" Linda asked, her voice shaking.

"I didn't want to have to tell you, today shouldn't be about that, it should be about the new baby, but...Linda, I could've lost her again, we could've lost her again."

That thought only now ran through her mind. They had already lost Stephanie once, and they could've lost her again. Linda could remember the last time, how could she ever forget really? The pain of losing her child was a hurt that would never be erased, regardless of the fact that Stephanie came back. That hurt rested deep within your heart. She could only imagine the hurt that Chris would've felt.

It was well-documented that Chris had not taken Stephanie's death well at first; that he had barely coped with her loss. That first night, that first couple of hours after Vince had told Chris that Stephanie had died, they still were fresh in Linda's mind and she was sure they were fresh in Chris's mind. Linda and Vince had gone to him that night, found him sitting on the couch, clutching his little girl and sitting there with the most forlorn look on his face. Dried tears clung to his skin, showing where they had fallen and leaving a lasting impression on his face. Those tears took years to dry, if they ever really left.

To Chris, the thought of losing Stephanie was unbearable. If he had lost her, he wouldn't have been able to go on, not even for his kids. Stephanie, quite simply put, was the love of his life, and that meant everything. He had married her, had children with her, and loved her to the very hilt of his being, and when he thought she had died, she took his heart to the bottom of the ocean with her, at least a big chunk of it.

"But we didn't lose her Chris," Linda finally said, clearing the silence, "We didn't and we have to remain focused on that."

"Daddy, can I hold him?" Regan asked sweetly.

"I think that would be ok, if Gramma is willing to give him up?"

"Of course, he's your little brother."

"Go sit on the couch," Chris said, putting Regan down and patting her on the butt so she would go over to the couch. Regan climbed up on the couch as Chris retrieved his son from his mother-in-law. He went over to Regan and she sat there, ready to hold her little brother. "Ok, you have to be very careful, hold out your arms."

Regan obeyed immediately. Chris set Bryant down in her arms very gently, still keeping a grip on him. He let go and made sure that Regan was supporting the baby's head. When he was sure that he was, he moved his hands away completely and let Regan hold onto her baby brother by herself. Regan looked up at Chris rather proudly.

"Daddy, I'm doing it!" Regan said happily.

"Yeah you are," he said proudly.

Linda stood up and went over to Chris and put her hand on his shoulder, "Chris, what exactly happened earlier?"

Chris turned to her, but kept one eye focused on Regan to make sure she kept a good grip on her brother. "I wasn't there, but Stephanie and the police told me the gist of it. Stephanie answered the door thinking that it was Shane or you, and it was Trish. Trish barged her way into our home and when Stephanie said to get out, she pulled a gun on her."

It was here that Chris took a moment to pause. That pause assaulted him with various images of Trish actually holding up a gun to his wife and his daughter and his at the time unborn child. He had never thought Trish dangerous, certainly never before she started going after Stephanie. He never thought her capable of this.

"Then Trish put a gun to Stephanie's stomach and threatened to shoot Bryant, before Regan came in and Trish threatened to shoot her too. Apparently Regan got away and Trish hit Stephanie's head against the wall and slapped her and was going to shoot her when the police came."

"But how did the police know to come?" Linda asked.

Chris glanced towards his little girl who seemed unaffected by it all as she made silly faces at Bryant, "Regan called them."

Linda was amazed, "She had the frame of mind to actually call the police? She's barely four years old."

"I know, but she's amazing."

"That she is," came another voice, a groggy voice in the general direction of the bed. Chris looked over to Stephanie and she smiled weakly at him before turning to bring her gaze back to her children. They posed such an adorable picture.

"You're up," Chris said.

"You guys aren't being very quiet," Stephanie said jokingly. "Hi baby girl."

Regan looked up, "Mama, I'm holding him!"

"Wow, you're such a big girl, you're going to have to help me take care of him."

"Ok!"

"Would it be alright if I held him?" Stephanie asked Regan.

Regan scrunched up her nose a little and then nodded. Chris went over to Regan and took Bryant from her little arms. He walked over to Stephanie and gave Bryant back to her. He picked up Regan and sat with her again in the chair. Stephanie gazed down at her son.

"He really is adorable."

"Yeah."

Linda spoke up, "You guys, I'm going to head out, I have a conference call that I can't miss, but I'll be by tomorrow."

"Ok Mom, thanks for watching Regan for us," Stephanie said softly. Linda went to everyone and gave them a kiss goodbye, before she left leaving the little family to themselves. Chris stared at Stephanie for a little while, while she got Bryant to sleep. Regan was rapidly falling asleep as well and when the nurse came to bring Bryant back to the nursery, he picked up the sleeping Regan and walked over to Stephanie.

"Stephy, I'm going to go home, do you need anything?"

"No, I think I'll be fine. I'll see you in the morning?"

"Wild horses couldn't keep me away," he smiled, "I'm happy that you're all right. That you're ok."

She rubbed the palm of his hand, "I'm fine. Everything is going to be ok from now on, Trish is out of our lives. They'll put her away for a long time. Don't worry ok? Just go home and get some rest, you deserve it."

"Do you want me to stay until you fall asleep, I have no problem doing that."

"Go," she whispered, "I'm a big girl, I can fall asleep on my own."

Chris kneeled by the side of the bed so he was about eye level with Stephanie, "I love you so much. I don't think you could ever know how much I love you. And thank you, for having my baby and everything."

"Don't thank me, I love you too, and I'm here for keeps Chris, for keeps."

Later that evening, Chris laid in his bed, alone, the only thing that could be heard was the ticking of the large grandfather clock in the hallway. He couldn't sleep, not just yet. The events from the day were passing in sequential order in his head, and he couldn't get them to stop at the moment. He kept going over moments, moments where his life could've been very different from how they were right now. He could've lost his wife, or his kids, or any combination of the two.

But none of those things had happened. And yet it was still hard for him to let go of the events that had transpired. Maybe the years of mourning Stephanie had done this to him, had made him second guess everything, had made him so staunchly believe in the "what-ifs." They probably had because for two years, he had thought up every "what-if" in the book regarding how he could've stopped Stephanie's death. In the end, none of the "what-if's" needed to be realized as Stephanie had come back to him.

Stephanie had been right earlier. Maybe it was time for him to let go of some of the things that he had held onto for so long. Not just with Trish, but with Stephanie too. It was only then that he realized he had kept a part of his heart on reserve, had kept it tucked away in case he was ever hurt again. That part of his heart was what held him back from truly moving forward and at least forgetting some things. He had had his world come crashing down and now it was time to let that alone, move forward from it. He had to, if he wanted to see the future for what he had, instead of those lingering "what-if's."

He fell asleep with that in mind.

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A/N: There's probably going to be one chapter left to this, and I just wanted to let you know ahead of time. :)


	26. Chapter 26

As Chris stood there, it was almost like...well, he didn't know what it was like exactly, but it was strange to say the least. He didn't really want to come here, this place held such terrible memories for him. It also held the best memory, but it was always overshadowed by those years of torment he had suffered.

The water was still calm, like it was the last time he was here, but he had to make peace with it. This place didn't take his wife, it didn't steal her away and she wasn't buried at the bottom of the sea. She was standing next to him, holding their two month old son. He stood there by himself, just staring out at the water. Stephanie was giving him space as she bounced the crying Bryant around.

"Regan, not so close to the water, ok," Stephanie said as she walked over to where Regan was standing, throwing rocks into the water.

"Ok Mommy," Regan said, taking a few steps back.

Stephanie's bruises had healed and her smile had never faltered once in that entire time. Her face was once again not marred by ugly bruises and black eyes. Just like she said they would, the bruises healed and the pain she had been through disappeared with time. She had had to remind Chris of that a few times, but even he managed to get the concept.

Trish had been sent to jail for attempted murder and aggravated assault after a speedy trial that didn't linger within the court system. She wouldn't be up for parole for another ten years. And even after that, the chances of her getting out were very slim. The McMahons were wealthy, and could pull some strings to make sure Trish never got a taste of freedom again. It was the least she deserved for all the troubles that she put Chris and Stephanie through; the very least.

Stephanie, showing off how strong she was, testified against Trish at the trial. Chris remembered her getting up, sitting on that stand and saying every word while staring Trish dead in the eye. Stephanie had no fear about testifying, and seeing Trish's face as Stephanie spoke, you could just tell that Trish knew she was going to be sent to jail. And Chris had never been happier to hear the word, "guilty," more in his entire life.

And after that, they settled into a life that they had sought out since Stephanie had gotten her memory back. Chris was happy now, he could honestly say that he was happy. But he didn't have anything to be sad about. His life had finally reached a perfection that he thought he could never achieve. Was it really just a few years ago that his life was topsy-turvy?

"It's ok baby, shh, it's ok," Stephanie whispered to their son. She grabbed a light blanket out of the baby bag on the ground and putting it over the baby, keeping the wind away from his face. "There, that's better, huh Bry?"

Bryant was adorable, and he did look like Chris, at least around the eyes. Staring into the baby blues, a person could get completely mesmerized. He was a chubby little thing too, with the most pinchable cheeks anyone had ever seen. Except they had learned he hated to have his cheeks pinched, if the death look anyone got was any indication. Chris wouldn't dare say it to Stephanie's face, but it was the exact death look she gave to people. He never told her that because she was liable to give him that look and it was pretty terrifying. He was a little on the cranky side, but they just thought that was a McMahon trait, or Chris thought it was a McMahon trait, Stephanie simply glared at him for saying that and then threatened to tell the rest of her family so they could glare at him too.

Regan was a great big sister, helping Stephanie whenever she could. Stephanie preferred to stay at home for now. With Regan in pre-school and Bryant almost three months old, she was just content to play the mom card that she had missed out on with Regan. Chris had lightened his work schedule some, only working when absolutely necessary. He hated leaving his family behind, even more so after that day when he had left them and almost lost them.

But he didn't want to think about that anymore. They were in England to clean out Stephanie's old flat that she had lived in when she had amnesia. She had decided to not keep it anymore, as she didn't feel she needed it anymore. It was part of the whole, "moving on" thing they were trying to do now.

And so here he stood, in the same spot that Stephanie had come back to him at. The same spot where she miraculously appeared and made all the pain disappear. All the times before then, all the loneliness, all the sadness, all the days he didn't want to get out of bed knowing that he wouldn't get to see the blue pools of water that were Stephanie's eyes, they were gone, like the wind on a summer's day.

"Penny for your thoughts," Stephanie asked as she stood next to Chris, holding Bryant close to her chest.

"Just thinking about the last time I was here," he told her.

"Oh yeah, when was that again?" she teased.

"The day I got you back."

"Oh that's right, it must have slipped my mind," Stephanie said, leaning her head against his shoulder. Her brown hair fell against his arm, tickling it slightly. He reached out his arm to snake it around her back and wrapping his arm around her waist. She sighed and he turned his head to drop a kiss to the spot where her hairline met her forehead.

"What would you have done if I hadn't come back?" Stephanie asked curiously. Her eyes followed Regan as she ran to grab some rocks to throw into the water.

The question surprised Chris because Stephanie hardly brought up the time when she wasn't with him. He didn't know exactly how to answer that. He could tell her grandiose things like how he wouldn't have been able to go on and how he wanted to kill himself, or he could tell her the truth. The truth won out.

"I would've kept on going, just like I did every day that you were gone. I'd pick myself up and I'd keep going because Regan needed me. I would miss you, and I'd think about you, but I'd still keep going."

"That's what I'd want you to do," Stephanie said quietly. "I would want you to go on. I'd want only the best for you."

"I know."

"Chris?"

"Yeah?"

"Why do you love me so much?" She didn't mean to make it sound so emotional, but as she felt the tears coming to her eyes, she wanted to know. Chris had lost her, and he could've easily moved on. She could've come back and he could've had a whole new family, a whole new love, but he hadn't.

"That's a silly question," Chris said simply.

"How is it silly?"

"Because I've told you enough times for three lifetimes. I tell you often enough that I love you, and you still need to know why I love you?"

"But you had two years to get over me, and you didn't," she pointed out.

"If you think for one second that I was going to get over you in a measly two years, you're crazy. How long had we been together before you disappeared? Three years, I think it was, it would've taken me at least twice as long to get over you."

"But why?" she asked again.

He closed his eyes for a moment and then opened them to stare out at the water. "Lots of people don't believe in that perfect person, and I was one of those people. I certainly didn't believe that there could possibly be one person out there for me. Not when I was out with any girl I could find--"

"I don't need to know about that part thank you very much," Stephanie said sternly.

"Sorry," Chris apologized with a laugh, "That was until I met you. And I won't say it was love at first sight or any silly notion like that. I just met you and then I got to know you, and damn if you weren't the most intriguing, interesting person I'd ever met in my life. And I had to ask you out, but I was so nervous, and then that storyline with you and Hunter was heating up so fast that I almost felt like I could lose you to him so I got off my ass and took the plunge. And that's when I realized, there is one perfect person for everyone, and you are my person Steph, you are that one person that I feel complete with. When you were gone, I felt incomplete, and it's because you were and are it for me. Because you are unequivocally the most spectacular person I've ever come across in my entire life. And there's not a single word in the known universe that can accurately describe why I love you."

Stephanie smiled and nodded, "Well, I think that was pretty thorough."

"You asked," he shrugged.

"I should've known better," she said with a quiet laugh then patted her hand against Bryant's diaper. "And someone needs a change, I'm going to go change him in the car."

"Ok, don't forget the baby bag," Chris said, going to pick it up and slipping it through Stephanie's arm to rest on her shoulder. She kissed his cheek and then started to walk up to the car, disappearing into the fog. The heat of her kiss felt like it burned into his cheek as he could feel it, even after she had left.

Regan ran up to Chris and looked up at him, "Daddy, carry me, I'm tired."

Chris smiled and lifted her easily. She rested her head against his shoulder and closed her eyes. After expending her energy running around looking and throwing rocks, Regan quickly fell asleep on Chris's shoulder. He felt an odd sense of deja vu as he stood there, holding Regan in his arms, staring out over the water...

It was so quiet at that second that Chris almost felt like he and Regan were the only ones in the world. He couldn't hear a sound except for the soft lapping of the water up onto the beach. It was almost like he was back in time, that nothing had changed and he was back to standing at that beach, without Stephanie and without Bryant. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath of the salty air and opened them again.

He looked down and instead of seeing Regan, the four year old, he saw Regan the two year old. He looked around and didn't see anything but the fog that had rolled in. He felt odd, like he wasn't supposed to be here. He looked down and saw that he was wearing the same clothes he had on that day so long ago and started to panic.

"Stephanie!" he called out, but he received no answer. "Stephanie, where the hell are you!"

Again, there was no answer, and he looked behind him to see that it wasn't the car that he had driven to the beach with Stephanie, it was the car that he had rented to drive to the beach when he thought he was visiting...Stephanie's final resting place. He ran up to the parking lot overlooking the water and looked around, thinking someone was playing a cruel joke on him. That had to be it, this had to be a cruel joke. There was no way that he had dreamed up the fact that Stephanie had come back to him.

No matter how hard he looked, he couldn't see her anywhere, and he couldn't see the car that they had come in. He was so scared that he was trembling, causing Regan to wake up. He looked into his daughter's young face and couldn't believe that he was back here. Where was here? What the hell was going on?

"Daddy, we go now?" Regan said.

"Regan, where's Mommy?" Chris asked her, dreading the answer.

"Water," she said, pointing behind Chris's shoulder to the water beyond. "She left remember?"

"No, she didn't leave, she didn't!"

"Daddy?" Regan asked quizzically, not understanding her father's behavior. "You say Mama gone."

"No, she's not gone." Chris put Regan down and started running all over the place trying to locate his wife. He ran everywhere, Regan watching him with tears in her eyes because she didn't know what was going on with her father. Chris continued to run around, looking for something that wasn't there. He ran back over to Regan and dropped to his knees in exhaustion.

"Stephanie!" he cried out...

"What?" Stephanie said.

Chris opened his eyes and looked to his right where Stephanie was driving the car. She looked over at him briefly, a questioning look in her eyes. Chris sat up and looked around, Stephanie was keeping her eyes on the road as she drove, and looking to the backseat he saw that both Regan and Bryant were fast asleep, Regan's head leaning on the arm of Bryant's car-seat, while Bryant's tiny hand had somehow come to rest on top of her head.

"Chris, what is it? If it was about that cat that ran across the road, I dodged it," she told him.

"No, it was nothing," he said.

"Ok, I was going to yell at you if you woke up the kids, but it looks like they're out for the next couple of hours, they'll probably sleep on the plane too."

"Yeah," Chris said, "That's good, more time for us."

She laughed, "Yeah, we don't get a lot of that right now do we?"

Chris smiled as he looked at her. Those dreams came and went every so often, though they were starting to become very infrequent. But they still scared him. He didn't tell Stephanie about them because she would reassure him that she was indeed real and every moment he spent with her was real, but he knew the dreams would disappear over time. He just needed more time.

"No, we don't," he said, "Maybe we can have my parents take them to Canada for a visit."

"I don't know, Bryant is so young, maybe when he's a little older."

"Ok," Chris smiled, "Sometime in the future."

"We'll see."

Chris simply reached his hand across and took her free hand and held it his own while she drove. She gave him a small smile in recognition before training her eyes back to the road. She gave his hand a slight squeeze which he returned.

And that was all he needed.

THE END

* * *

A/N: Well, this ends a very, very long series that started almost exactly two years ago. I hope you enjoyed all the chapters and everything, and I hope that the ending was at least satisfying. I'll miss this story since I worked on it for so long, and I want to thank everyone who's read this and who's enjoyed this and reviewed it. So thank you all so much. :)


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